Obviously, anything that I say here is anecdotal and based on my own personal experiences. Your experiences, of course, may be very different!
I've talked previously about my enjoyment of Reality TV and how I like to observe real people reacting and responding to the unusual or unfamiliar situations in which they are placed.
I think I could have been a good observer for anecdotal research. I'm not a 'facts' girl. The information between the facts is much more interesting to me. If my interest is piqued, I can be quite intuitive and sensitive to information that others miss.
A favourite pastime of mine is sitting quietly for hours in the corner at a party, in a busy airport terminal, or even at night in a club or pub and just observing the people. Each individual is incredibly intriguing the way they interact with the different people they meet.
If you put ME in a new situation with a large group of people, I will be very quiet, hold myself back, observe everybody, figure out where I fit in with the group and then slowly slide into the spot where I think I fit.
Depending on the group, I could be a leader or a follower, a confidante or a clown, an analyser or a teacher - one of many different roles - but I can adapt to most roles (good adapting skills gained when changing schools seventeen times in my childhood - see post dated March 9th).
Most people I know, already have a 'role' imprinted in their 'being' and enter a group to fill that role. If the role is already filled by someone else, then they soon leave the group and subconsciously go looking for new groups until they fit somewhere.
But once again I digress .... I do that a lot don't I?!
So, you see, I am a people analyser and I yearn to understand humans and why they do the things that they do. They intrigue me and psychiatry would have been an interesting career for me if the study didn't involve so many facts!
Anyway, Adoring Husband, Number One Son, and most males that I know are very much into Fiction/Fantasy. They have no time for Reality TV and get very bored observing people at parties, airports or clubs.
In those situations, they either want to disappear into a Fiction/Fantasy book or get involved in the party by mingling, dancing, drinking, laughing and 'being'. Automatically filling their subconscious roles, not noticing other people's roles and not giving a rat's about roles.
Adoring Husband is almost obsessed with Star Trek, 'V', Dr Who, Star Wars etc. He watches them religiously and loves to get lost in the weird and wonderful fantasy world of the characters.
These shows bore me to tears (although I did quite enjoy the hilarious acting prowess of David Tennant in the last Dr Who series).
I just can't understand where the interest lies in a story line that is not possible and that could never happen in real life. I would, however, be interested to meet the person who wrote the story and analyse his/her mind!
So, there in itself, is another analytical dilemna for me to study and question. Why does he like Fantasy and why do I like Reality? At what point in our lives was that decision made in our brains? How can we be compatible, when we are drawn to such different genres?
I have my own theories of course. Adoring Husband is a very complex and unusual (and by 'unusual', I mean 'strange' lol) individual and I know he will provide years of analytical heaven for me ... but don't get me started!
While I've been writing this, I've discovered that Fantasy really does have a role in my life, because Adoring Husband has been deeply involved in an episode of 'V' that he recorded earlier, and has left me in peace to write! Hah!
I guess this proves that it doesn't have to be Reality v Fantasy and the two can be compatible after all!!
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Vegan or Not to Vegan ... THAT is the question!
Just as a matter of interest, I've been trolling the internet for information on veganism and I found this great little website.
It provides extensive information about vitamin and nutrient requirements, vegan meal plans, results of research that shows how a vegetarian and/or vegan diet has affected the health of people with medical conditions such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, kidney disease, blood pressure etc.
It gives information about food allergies, vegan diets for children, teens and pregnant women. It also has book recommendations and much more.
So here is the link and I hope that you learn something new and interesting!
http://www.veganhealth.org/
I am considering taking my vegetarian diet a step further, but I'm not sure that I can go completely vegan. I do know how much better I feel, physically, since removing meat from my diet (I still have a little seafood two or three times a week), and I would like to take the next step.
Now I'm noticing how my body reacts to dairy and I'm not liking it very much, so I might just remove milk (except for my morning cappuccino), cheese and butter, to see if I feel the difference.
Small steps, I say!
I'll let you know the answer to my 'Vegan or Not to Vegan' question some time in the near future I guess!
It provides extensive information about vitamin and nutrient requirements, vegan meal plans, results of research that shows how a vegetarian and/or vegan diet has affected the health of people with medical conditions such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, kidney disease, blood pressure etc.
It gives information about food allergies, vegan diets for children, teens and pregnant women. It also has book recommendations and much more.
So here is the link and I hope that you learn something new and interesting!
http://www.veganhealth.org/
I am considering taking my vegetarian diet a step further, but I'm not sure that I can go completely vegan. I do know how much better I feel, physically, since removing meat from my diet (I still have a little seafood two or three times a week), and I would like to take the next step.
Now I'm noticing how my body reacts to dairy and I'm not liking it very much, so I might just remove milk (except for my morning cappuccino), cheese and butter, to see if I feel the difference.
Small steps, I say!
I'll let you know the answer to my 'Vegan or Not to Vegan' question some time in the near future I guess!
Monday, March 28, 2011
If it's Gunna Happen ....
It's been an interesting day.
Adoring Husband gently woke me this morning just after 6am, with a big smile on his face and invited me to play golf.
My friend, 'Woman of Many Talents', who is my usual golfing buddy on Monday mornings, is away in Melbourne at the moment, so after our successful Friday golfing jaunt, Adoring Husband decided we should do it again.
He came home with the same number of golf balls that he arrived with, but that's only because he found two golf balls that belonged to other people, after he had lost two of his own!
That familiar cracking sound of ball against tree was ringing loudly again, as was the familiar sight of male searching for lost ball. Again, we had good shots and bad shots and Adoring Husband got a birdie on the 8th hole, for which he received a well deserved high five!
He struggled to finish nine holes with his dodgy back, but we made it intact.
On the way home, we stopped to buy some lotto tickets and while in the newsagents, Adoring Husband surprised me with a couple of photography magazines. Inside one of those was a competition! Suddenly I'm inspired to go online and find all the current photography competitions across the Universe!
In the meantime, Adoring Husband drove into The Bay to buy some straw and other such goodies for the Lovely Laying Chookies. Upon his return, and while tending to the chooks, he accidentally kicked his toe on the wheel barrow and lifted a toe nail. ***squirm***
Blood smearing all over his thong (once again, it's the thong on his foot, not on his butt) and the toe nail hanging by a thread and all MY nerves rising to the surface and me feeling nauseas, squeezing my eyes shut so that I don't have to look! Ugh!
So his golf day tomorrow is now cancelled because he can't walk properly!
Now it's time to prepare dinner. Sushi tonight. It's the first time we've attempted to make sushi. I prepared the rice earlier and together we sit either side of the kitchen bench with our sushi roasted seaweed sheets and our bamboo sushi mats and make our own sushi rolls to cut later.
Adoring Husband squeezes Wasabi paste onto his rice in a long thick line from end to end (if you've tasted wasabi, you know what's coming!) and then adds prawns, smoked salmon and avocado. I use crab meat, avocado, carrot, cucumber and shallots. Then I make another one replacing the crab with prawns.
Into the fridge they go for a couple of hours and we will cut them just before we eat them. Let's relax on the couch for a while! Down he sits and 'bang' he knocks his sore toe on the footrest. Phwoar! That takes his breath away! He wonders out loud if perhaps he has broken his toe!
Two hours later, with a bowl of sushi soy sauce and a bowl of pickled ginger, we cut our sushi and arrange them beautifully on the platter. Adoring Husband takes a bite of his first piece of sushi and immediately, his eyes and nose begin to water and he coughs and splutters and runs to the fridge for a bottle of water.
Woops! Too much wasabi on his sushi!
So, I generously offer half of my sushi, but he refuses stating "No! I made the mistake! I will eat my own!" Three bottles of water later, he had eaten over half of his sushi and finally conceded defeat, concerned that he would make himself sick.
I can't even imagine how hot that must have been... but this has been a typical day in Adoring Husband's life and ... if it's gunna happen, it's gunna happen to Adoring Husband!
Adoring Husband gently woke me this morning just after 6am, with a big smile on his face and invited me to play golf.
My friend, 'Woman of Many Talents', who is my usual golfing buddy on Monday mornings, is away in Melbourne at the moment, so after our successful Friday golfing jaunt, Adoring Husband decided we should do it again.
He came home with the same number of golf balls that he arrived with, but that's only because he found two golf balls that belonged to other people, after he had lost two of his own!
That familiar cracking sound of ball against tree was ringing loudly again, as was the familiar sight of male searching for lost ball. Again, we had good shots and bad shots and Adoring Husband got a birdie on the 8th hole, for which he received a well deserved high five!
He struggled to finish nine holes with his dodgy back, but we made it intact.
On the way home, we stopped to buy some lotto tickets and while in the newsagents, Adoring Husband surprised me with a couple of photography magazines. Inside one of those was a competition! Suddenly I'm inspired to go online and find all the current photography competitions across the Universe!
In the meantime, Adoring Husband drove into The Bay to buy some straw and other such goodies for the Lovely Laying Chookies. Upon his return, and while tending to the chooks, he accidentally kicked his toe on the wheel barrow and lifted a toe nail. ***squirm***
Blood smearing all over his thong (once again, it's the thong on his foot, not on his butt) and the toe nail hanging by a thread and all MY nerves rising to the surface and me feeling nauseas, squeezing my eyes shut so that I don't have to look! Ugh!
So his golf day tomorrow is now cancelled because he can't walk properly!
Now it's time to prepare dinner. Sushi tonight. It's the first time we've attempted to make sushi. I prepared the rice earlier and together we sit either side of the kitchen bench with our sushi roasted seaweed sheets and our bamboo sushi mats and make our own sushi rolls to cut later.
Adoring Husband squeezes Wasabi paste onto his rice in a long thick line from end to end (if you've tasted wasabi, you know what's coming!) and then adds prawns, smoked salmon and avocado. I use crab meat, avocado, carrot, cucumber and shallots. Then I make another one replacing the crab with prawns.
Into the fridge they go for a couple of hours and we will cut them just before we eat them. Let's relax on the couch for a while! Down he sits and 'bang' he knocks his sore toe on the footrest. Phwoar! That takes his breath away! He wonders out loud if perhaps he has broken his toe!
Two hours later, with a bowl of sushi soy sauce and a bowl of pickled ginger, we cut our sushi and arrange them beautifully on the platter. Adoring Husband takes a bite of his first piece of sushi and immediately, his eyes and nose begin to water and he coughs and splutters and runs to the fridge for a bottle of water.
Woops! Too much wasabi on his sushi!
So, I generously offer half of my sushi, but he refuses stating "No! I made the mistake! I will eat my own!" Three bottles of water later, he had eaten over half of his sushi and finally conceded defeat, concerned that he would make himself sick.
I can't even imagine how hot that must have been... but this has been a typical day in Adoring Husband's life and ... if it's gunna happen, it's gunna happen to Adoring Husband!
Sunday, March 27, 2011
My Current Favourite Recipe
Having recently changed my diet to vegetarian, I've been trying lots of different recipes and also experimenting with old recipes. I've been using this one a lot lately and I've passed it on to many other people who are all raving about it.
It can be a great vegetarian meal. It's safe for Coeliacs. Men (and we know how fussy men are about vegetables!) really love it. If you are a meat lover, this is great to have as a side dish with any roast meat. The really great thing is that you don't have to stand over it or spend time tending to it. You can go off and do something else while it cooks (such as writing a new blog post!).
So for any of you interested, here is the recipe. I'm sorry that I don't have a photo to go with it, but I will add a photo at a later date ... after the fabulous new camera arrives!!
Honey Roasted Vegetables
2 large potatoes
1/2 butternut pumpkin
1/2 parsnip
1 turnip
1/2 sweet potato
1 carrot
2 onions
1 red capsicum
1 punnet of cherry tomatoes
1 head of garlic
2 chillies
2 T honey
1/2 Lemon
Salt and pepper to taste
Drizzle of olive oil
It can be a great vegetarian meal. It's safe for Coeliacs. Men (and we know how fussy men are about vegetables!) really love it. If you are a meat lover, this is great to have as a side dish with any roast meat. The really great thing is that you don't have to stand over it or spend time tending to it. You can go off and do something else while it cooks (such as writing a new blog post!).
So for any of you interested, here is the recipe. I'm sorry that I don't have a photo to go with it, but I will add a photo at a later date ... after the fabulous new camera arrives!!
Honey Roasted Vegetables
2 large potatoes
1/2 butternut pumpkin
1/2 parsnip
1 turnip
1/2 sweet potato
1 carrot
2 onions
1 red capsicum
1 punnet of cherry tomatoes
1 head of garlic
2 chillies
2 T honey
1/2 Lemon
Salt and pepper to taste
Drizzle of olive oil
- Peel the potatoes, pumpkin, parsnip, turnip, sweet potato, carrot and onions.
- Cut them into chunky bite sized pieces.
- Drizzle a little oil into the bottom of a large baking dish.
- Toss all of the chopped veggies into the pan.
- Separate the cloves of garlic and toss them in the pan (unpeeled), along with the cherry tomatoes.
- Cut the capsicum into chunks, finely chop the chillies and add them to the veggies.
- Season with salt and pepper and give them a stir.
- Drizzle about 2 tablespoons of honey over the veggies and give them another toss.
- Put the baking dish into the oven at 180 - 200 degrees for 40 minutes.
- Remove the baking dish from the oven. Stir the veggies and return to the oven for 30 mins.
- Squeeze the juice of about half a lemon over the veggies, stir and serve.
********
The three rules that apply to this fabulous recipe:
1 Very healthy.
2 Very delicious.
3 Very easy.
Bon Appetit!!
Saturday, March 26, 2011
UGH!! Toads make my skin crawl!!
Anti-social: unable or unwilling to associate in a normal or friendly way. That's what toads are.
I LOVE frogs (as you may already be aware), but I really, really, really, really, really HATE toads! They are the most disgusting creatures on the planet. They are ugly. They are poisonous. They only come out at night. They kill frogs (and any other creature that gets too close). They lay eggs in still water, so even the dog's water bowl is not safe. They can squeeze through the smallest opening to get to where they want to be and they smell!
I have three phobias. The first is sharks. Even though I adore living close to the water, I dislike swimming in it, because I am terrified of sharks. I was bumped by a shark while swimming in the ocean when I was 17 yrs old, so the fear is strong!
The second phobia is dying in a plane crash. This is residue from watching all the 'Airport' movies as a teenager. My biggest fear is surviving in a plane that crashes into the ocean and THEN I am eaten alive by a shark!! ***shudder***
My third phobia is toads. When I was little, about four or five years old, I had a puppy that was killed by a toad. The toad squirted it's poison into the mouth of my puppy and it died a painful death during the night.
The house that we lived in at the time, had a timber ramp that went from the back door down to the concrete path that led all the way down the back yard to the 'outhouse' (or 'toilet' for you young ones who have only experienced shiny white flushing indoor varieties).
Picture this: You're standing at the back door in the middle of the night looking out over the yard. There is a full moon, so it is quite light out. The dew on the grass is glistening in the moonlight. You see movement out of the corner of your eye and you look towards the movement. There, about six metres away is a big fat brown shiny toad, hopping towards the concrete path.
As he hops, he disturbs another toad about a metre away, which also takes a hop. This, in turn, creates almost a domino effect and suddenly there are thirty toads hopping all over the back yard, onto and over the concrete path. The concrete path that your little 5 yr old legs need to carry you along to reach the outhouse.
Those killer toads, one of which, killed your little puppy!
Nope! Not doin' it! Pull the jammy bottoms down, hang on to the railing of the ramp, swing myself over the side and pee into the garden!! Run inside and slam that back door before they getcha!
So, one night recently, we accidentally left the garage door open after dark. Our double garage is part of our house with a door that enters from it to our family room/kitchen. That door was also open. I closed the garage door at about 8pm. Adoring husband went to bed at 8.30pm. I went to the kitchen to make a cup of tea at 9pm and there to greet me were two large, ugly brown toads!
I gasped loudly and quickly stepped back into the lounge room. OMG! What do I do? What do I do?
Stop hyperventilating and get Adoring Husband!
I opened the bedroom door to the sound of Adoring Husband's loud snores. "Adoring Husband! Adoring Husband!" I shouted. He sat up with a fright. "What's the matter?" he gasped, probably thinking the house was on fire or something equally devastating!
"There are two toads in the house!" I shrilled.
"Well what the hell do you want me to do about it?" he asked through his sleepiness.
"Get them OUT!!!!" I demanded, wondering what the hell he thought the other options might be!!
He cursed me as he dragged himself out of bed and put some clothes on.
Of course, by the time we got back out to the family room, the toads had disappeared! This meant moving all of the furniture until we found them ... or I should say until HE found them, because I was backed against a wall holding my breath and refusing to move in case the killer toads GOT ME!
It took him about 20 minutes to find them and he threw a tea towel over each one and threw the toads over the fence (this does not kill or injure a toad, so no toads were harmed in this story!) and the tea towels were then disposed of.
New rule: Garage door MUST be closed before the sun goes down.
Last night, somehow the laundry door was left open. This created a 'party effect' for all beetles, mosquitoes, crickets, bugs and TOADS! What a mess!
Luckily there was only one toad and it was very small. Small enough that I shuddered and gasped and grunted and squirmed but was still able to remove it without waking Adoring Husband.
New rule: Close all access points to the house before the sun goes down!
UGH!! Toads make my skin crawl!! They are the only bad thing about living in Queensland!
I LOVE frogs (as you may already be aware), but I really, really, really, really, really HATE toads! They are the most disgusting creatures on the planet. They are ugly. They are poisonous. They only come out at night. They kill frogs (and any other creature that gets too close). They lay eggs in still water, so even the dog's water bowl is not safe. They can squeeze through the smallest opening to get to where they want to be and they smell!
I have three phobias. The first is sharks. Even though I adore living close to the water, I dislike swimming in it, because I am terrified of sharks. I was bumped by a shark while swimming in the ocean when I was 17 yrs old, so the fear is strong!
The second phobia is dying in a plane crash. This is residue from watching all the 'Airport' movies as a teenager. My biggest fear is surviving in a plane that crashes into the ocean and THEN I am eaten alive by a shark!! ***shudder***
My third phobia is toads. When I was little, about four or five years old, I had a puppy that was killed by a toad. The toad squirted it's poison into the mouth of my puppy and it died a painful death during the night.
The house that we lived in at the time, had a timber ramp that went from the back door down to the concrete path that led all the way down the back yard to the 'outhouse' (or 'toilet' for you young ones who have only experienced shiny white flushing indoor varieties).
Picture this: You're standing at the back door in the middle of the night looking out over the yard. There is a full moon, so it is quite light out. The dew on the grass is glistening in the moonlight. You see movement out of the corner of your eye and you look towards the movement. There, about six metres away is a big fat brown shiny toad, hopping towards the concrete path.
As he hops, he disturbs another toad about a metre away, which also takes a hop. This, in turn, creates almost a domino effect and suddenly there are thirty toads hopping all over the back yard, onto and over the concrete path. The concrete path that your little 5 yr old legs need to carry you along to reach the outhouse.
Those killer toads, one of which, killed your little puppy!
Nope! Not doin' it! Pull the jammy bottoms down, hang on to the railing of the ramp, swing myself over the side and pee into the garden!! Run inside and slam that back door before they getcha!
So, one night recently, we accidentally left the garage door open after dark. Our double garage is part of our house with a door that enters from it to our family room/kitchen. That door was also open. I closed the garage door at about 8pm. Adoring husband went to bed at 8.30pm. I went to the kitchen to make a cup of tea at 9pm and there to greet me were two large, ugly brown toads!
I gasped loudly and quickly stepped back into the lounge room. OMG! What do I do? What do I do?
Stop hyperventilating and get Adoring Husband!
I opened the bedroom door to the sound of Adoring Husband's loud snores. "Adoring Husband! Adoring Husband!" I shouted. He sat up with a fright. "What's the matter?" he gasped, probably thinking the house was on fire or something equally devastating!
"There are two toads in the house!" I shrilled.
"Well what the hell do you want me to do about it?" he asked through his sleepiness.
"Get them OUT!!!!" I demanded, wondering what the hell he thought the other options might be!!
He cursed me as he dragged himself out of bed and put some clothes on.
Of course, by the time we got back out to the family room, the toads had disappeared! This meant moving all of the furniture until we found them ... or I should say until HE found them, because I was backed against a wall holding my breath and refusing to move in case the killer toads GOT ME!
It took him about 20 minutes to find them and he threw a tea towel over each one and threw the toads over the fence (this does not kill or injure a toad, so no toads were harmed in this story!) and the tea towels were then disposed of.
New rule: Garage door MUST be closed before the sun goes down.
Last night, somehow the laundry door was left open. This created a 'party effect' for all beetles, mosquitoes, crickets, bugs and TOADS! What a mess!
Luckily there was only one toad and it was very small. Small enough that I shuddered and gasped and grunted and squirmed but was still able to remove it without waking Adoring Husband.
New rule: Close all access points to the house before the sun goes down!
UGH!! Toads make my skin crawl!! They are the only bad thing about living in Queensland!
Friday, March 25, 2011
Carting Me Around the Golf Course
What a lovely afternoon I've had with Adoring Husband today, playing golf in The Bay!
Neither of us has ever played this course before. The Club has a deal where you can play after 2pm for $20, so we hired a cart and played eighteen holes together.
The course was very pretty with an abundance of wildlife and bird life. The recent bad weather has obviously played havoc with some of the fairways and the putting greens played fast compared to the greens that I usually play. I found quite a few sand bunkers, but I didn't lose any balls (Adoring Husband did!) and I didn't find the water once!
We both played some great shots and we both played some horrendous shots. Adoring Husband had a mini tantrum and almost broke a club when he smashed it into the ground after one of those horrendous shots!
His punishment for that was the promise that I would tell everyone in my blog post. ***chuckle***
It was quite busy and we played close on the tail of the team ahead of us and we had golfers close on our tails as well, which probably didn't help our game a lot.
This was the first time that I've ever used a cart to play golf and also the first time that I've played eighteen holes. I even got to drive the cart a couple of times, which was pretty cool (I have never learned to drive a car). At the eighteenth hole, I put my foot down on the accelerator and scooted off yelling to Adoring Husband "You can walk from here!"
We even found our way to the nineteenth hole and had a beer at the end of the game and had a little flutter on the pokies.
I've been playing golf for about eighteen months now, and if there is one thing that I've learned, it's this. Unless his name is Tiger Woods, a man will always try to hit the ball too hard and will always end up in the trees.
This does not just apply to Adoring Husband, but to all men who step foot onto a golf course! I have become very familiar with that cracking sound that a golf ball makes as it hits the trunk or the branch of any sized tree that lines the fairways.
I have also become familiar with the sight of small groups of men wandering aimlessly through the trees, backwards and forwards as they desperately search for yet another lost ball.
But enough about that. If I spend too much time bagging the male golf game, Adoring Husband might choose to take somebody other than me next time an afternoon of golf is on offer!!
I would much rather he be carting ME around the golf course!
Neither of us has ever played this course before. The Club has a deal where you can play after 2pm for $20, so we hired a cart and played eighteen holes together.
The course was very pretty with an abundance of wildlife and bird life. The recent bad weather has obviously played havoc with some of the fairways and the putting greens played fast compared to the greens that I usually play. I found quite a few sand bunkers, but I didn't lose any balls (Adoring Husband did!) and I didn't find the water once!
We both played some great shots and we both played some horrendous shots. Adoring Husband had a mini tantrum and almost broke a club when he smashed it into the ground after one of those horrendous shots!
His punishment for that was the promise that I would tell everyone in my blog post. ***chuckle***
It was quite busy and we played close on the tail of the team ahead of us and we had golfers close on our tails as well, which probably didn't help our game a lot.
This was the first time that I've ever used a cart to play golf and also the first time that I've played eighteen holes. I even got to drive the cart a couple of times, which was pretty cool (I have never learned to drive a car). At the eighteenth hole, I put my foot down on the accelerator and scooted off yelling to Adoring Husband "You can walk from here!"
We even found our way to the nineteenth hole and had a beer at the end of the game and had a little flutter on the pokies.
I've been playing golf for about eighteen months now, and if there is one thing that I've learned, it's this. Unless his name is Tiger Woods, a man will always try to hit the ball too hard and will always end up in the trees.
This does not just apply to Adoring Husband, but to all men who step foot onto a golf course! I have become very familiar with that cracking sound that a golf ball makes as it hits the trunk or the branch of any sized tree that lines the fairways.
I have also become familiar with the sight of small groups of men wandering aimlessly through the trees, backwards and forwards as they desperately search for yet another lost ball.
But enough about that. If I spend too much time bagging the male golf game, Adoring Husband might choose to take somebody other than me next time an afternoon of golf is on offer!!
I would much rather he be carting ME around the golf course!
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Spoilt Rotten - That's ME!
Adoring Husband did two things for me yesterday that have me very excited.
After returning from Sydney, he caught up on some reading, which included the last 5 updates on my blog. He read the post about me missing BGWLBH and almost immediately booked me a return flight for the July school holidays (BGWLBH is a Catholic School teacher) so that I could visit her!
That post wasn't meant to trigger such a fabulous response, but I'm so glad it did! I'm very much looking forward to seeing BGWLBH and some of my old friends again, although it will be the middle of Winter and it is bitterly cold down that way at that time of year!
I guess I will have to drag out the old Winter woollies - if I have any left that is.
The second thing that Adoring Husband did was take me on a treasure hunt. The 'treasure' being a new camera!
As you know, he did lots of research to find just the right camera for me, after I had told him that I would very much like to change from my old Sony (which has been a great camera and I would recommend it to anyone wanting to upgrade from a simple digital to DSLR) to a Canon.
After doing the photography course at USQ McGregor Summer School last year and also after talking to other amateur and professional photographers over the last year or so, it seemed that Canon was the camera of choice at both levels.
The range of cameras available were wide and varied but we knew that it was time to upgrade, not just choose something at the same level that I currently had.
I wanted to feel more confident about taking on job offers like weddings and birthday parties and we knew the grade of camera that would help instil that confidence. We chose a Canon EOS 5D Mark II.
It is the DREAM camera for photographers at my level.
I'm so excited! I am almost beside myself! I have to wait about seven working days for it to be delivered and in the meantime my other one has gone to camera hospital to see if it can be saved. It had everybody bamboozled as to what the problem might be. We did all agree, however, that it might be possessed!
Adoring Husband is still researching and almost has more knowledge about this particular camera than the Canon rep who was, co-incidentally, at the store yesterday when we were there to ask questions.
He keeps passing on little snippets of new information and directing me to places online to watch short training videos. He gets excited about every new piece of information he finds. So far, all of the information is positive and that's gotta be a good thing!
So now I wait! Yes, I am spoilt rotten! But come on ... I deserve it!
After returning from Sydney, he caught up on some reading, which included the last 5 updates on my blog. He read the post about me missing BGWLBH and almost immediately booked me a return flight for the July school holidays (BGWLBH is a Catholic School teacher) so that I could visit her!
That post wasn't meant to trigger such a fabulous response, but I'm so glad it did! I'm very much looking forward to seeing BGWLBH and some of my old friends again, although it will be the middle of Winter and it is bitterly cold down that way at that time of year!
I guess I will have to drag out the old Winter woollies - if I have any left that is.
The second thing that Adoring Husband did was take me on a treasure hunt. The 'treasure' being a new camera!
As you know, he did lots of research to find just the right camera for me, after I had told him that I would very much like to change from my old Sony (which has been a great camera and I would recommend it to anyone wanting to upgrade from a simple digital to DSLR) to a Canon.
After doing the photography course at USQ McGregor Summer School last year and also after talking to other amateur and professional photographers over the last year or so, it seemed that Canon was the camera of choice at both levels.
The range of cameras available were wide and varied but we knew that it was time to upgrade, not just choose something at the same level that I currently had.
I wanted to feel more confident about taking on job offers like weddings and birthday parties and we knew the grade of camera that would help instil that confidence. We chose a Canon EOS 5D Mark II.
It is the DREAM camera for photographers at my level.
I'm so excited! I am almost beside myself! I have to wait about seven working days for it to be delivered and in the meantime my other one has gone to camera hospital to see if it can be saved. It had everybody bamboozled as to what the problem might be. We did all agree, however, that it might be possessed!
Adoring Husband is still researching and almost has more knowledge about this particular camera than the Canon rep who was, co-incidentally, at the store yesterday when we were there to ask questions.
He keeps passing on little snippets of new information and directing me to places online to watch short training videos. He gets excited about every new piece of information he finds. So far, all of the information is positive and that's gotta be a good thing!
So now I wait! Yes, I am spoilt rotten! But come on ... I deserve it!
***HAPPY DANCE***
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Ten Things That I Love About Being Fifty
- When I see attractive young males at the beach wearing board shorts and nothing else, I can make animal noises, whistle or tell them straight to their faces how 'hot' they are and they always give me a big smile and laugh (as if to say "it's ok for us to give the poor old dear a thrill"). I would never have had the guts to do that when I was younger.
- I can play sport with little effort for five days a week and people consider me to be fit and conscientious.
- Where I used to fight so hard to find my identity among all of my titles of daughter, wife/partner, mother and grandmother, I now take pride in those titles.
- I can leave a party and go home to bed at 9pm and nobody questions it.
- As long as I don't look in the mirror, I can pretend that I look like Elle MacPherson, and almost believe it!
- Men in their seventies and eighties think that I am a hot young thing.
- I don't feel self conscious about doing things by myself, like drinking coffee in a cafe or going to a movie.
- I can look a man in the face and tell him if I don't like his attitude.
- My life has slowed down enough that I notice all the colours and the beauty in nature.
- I lie down for a nana nap in the afternoons and nobody thinks anything of it.
For Vegan Chickie
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday dear Vegan Chickie
Happy birthday to you
Lots of love, hugs and kisses from your favourite mother in the universe.
xxx
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday dear Vegan Chickie
Happy birthday to you
Lots of love, hugs and kisses from your favourite mother in the universe.
xxx
Some Wise Words
"There comes a time in life, when you walk away from all the drama and the people who create it. You surround yourself with people who make you laugh, forget the bad and focus on the good. So love the people who treat you right and pray for the ones who don't. Life is too short to be anything but happy. Falling down is a part of life. Getting back up is living."
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder!
Adoring Husband arrives home today, after five days and four nights in Sydney.
His lovely Mum turned 94 years young and he went down to spend her birthday with her and to make sure the Nursing Home was taking good care of her.
Unfortunately, Sydney had torrential rain for the whole time that he was there, so she wasn't able to leave the nursing home and he even missed out on watching his beloved Cronulla Sharks play football on Monday night. He did go to the ground but it was just too wet to watch comfortably so he jumped in a taxi and ended up watching the game in the comfort of his motel room.
I think five days and four nights is the perfect amount of time for couples to be apart two or three times a year.
Catch up on some reading. Listen to your favourite music. Spend time in the kitchen and cook your favourite food, and then eat it any time of the day or night that suits you. Watch your favourite TV shows. Have a nap on the couch with the fan directly on you. Go to bed and let the sound of rain on the roof lull you to sleep (instead of the sound of your husband snoring hehehe). Close up the house and sit enjoy the sounds of silence.
It's just long enough to enjoy some solitary time, and then look forward to your husband's return.
His plane landed about twenty minutes ago, so I am expecting him home some time in the next thirty minutes.
I have absolutely and thoroughly enjoyed my five days and four nights of complete freedom and I am very much looking forward to him returning today.
So welcome home my darling ... a short absence really does make the heart grow fonder :o)
His lovely Mum turned 94 years young and he went down to spend her birthday with her and to make sure the Nursing Home was taking good care of her.
Unfortunately, Sydney had torrential rain for the whole time that he was there, so she wasn't able to leave the nursing home and he even missed out on watching his beloved Cronulla Sharks play football on Monday night. He did go to the ground but it was just too wet to watch comfortably so he jumped in a taxi and ended up watching the game in the comfort of his motel room.
I think five days and four nights is the perfect amount of time for couples to be apart two or three times a year.
Catch up on some reading. Listen to your favourite music. Spend time in the kitchen and cook your favourite food, and then eat it any time of the day or night that suits you. Watch your favourite TV shows. Have a nap on the couch with the fan directly on you. Go to bed and let the sound of rain on the roof lull you to sleep (instead of the sound of your husband snoring hehehe). Close up the house and sit enjoy the sounds of silence.
It's just long enough to enjoy some solitary time, and then look forward to your husband's return.
His plane landed about twenty minutes ago, so I am expecting him home some time in the next thirty minutes.
I have absolutely and thoroughly enjoyed my five days and four nights of complete freedom and I am very much looking forward to him returning today.
So welcome home my darling ... a short absence really does make the heart grow fonder :o)
Monday, March 21, 2011
Camera Heaven
***sob***
My camera died today. ***sad face***
It was showing signs of illness yesterday when I was trying to take a photo of a lovely little green frog in our en suite bathroom. It took an hour, but I finally got it to work.
I thought it might be the battery, but even after it was fully charged, as soon as I put the battery back in the camera, it caused a red light to flash, even when it was turned off! It's possessed!!
I already miss it.
This morning there were turtles swimming close to the bank of the river.
A tiny little green tree frog attached itself to a leaf on the frangipani tree.
New lilies have opened in the fish pond.
Our hibiscus has four beautiful flowers blossoming on it.
Ten inch tall mushrooms are growing on the front lawn of Grace's house.
The butcher has a new little bulldog puppy who is just adorable and crying out to be photographed!
A storm bird was lurking in the massive fig tree on the riverbank.
It is incredibly frustrating to not have a working camera when these photographic opportunities arise!
My camera is two and a half years old and I have used it every single day since I bought it, so, I think it has lived a full life and I have definitely got my money's worth.
When I first got it, Vegan Chickie also bought a new camera while overseas, and we decided to send each other 'pic of the day', which would be a photo of something that we had seen or done each day with a description of the circumstances that led to the photo being taken.
It was a great way to have daily contact and be connected with each other's lives. Our photography has improved over time and I think both of us have taken some pretty spectacular shots.
Quite strange that for the last two weeks, Adoring Husband has been researching new cameras. His intuition must have been tuned in ... he DOES have that strange electrical energy around him ... maybe he could sense that it was ready to die??!!
So he has already emailed some camera details to me and has some good ideas about what is available and what costs we are looking at. If money was no object... oh my goodness! The fun I could have!
I am feeling very sad that my camera has gone to camera heaven, but I am very excited about making friends with a new one!
My camera died today. ***sad face***
It was showing signs of illness yesterday when I was trying to take a photo of a lovely little green frog in our en suite bathroom. It took an hour, but I finally got it to work.
I thought it might be the battery, but even after it was fully charged, as soon as I put the battery back in the camera, it caused a red light to flash, even when it was turned off! It's possessed!!
I already miss it.
This morning there were turtles swimming close to the bank of the river.
A tiny little green tree frog attached itself to a leaf on the frangipani tree.
New lilies have opened in the fish pond.
Our hibiscus has four beautiful flowers blossoming on it.
Ten inch tall mushrooms are growing on the front lawn of Grace's house.
The butcher has a new little bulldog puppy who is just adorable and crying out to be photographed!
A storm bird was lurking in the massive fig tree on the riverbank.
It is incredibly frustrating to not have a working camera when these photographic opportunities arise!
My camera is two and a half years old and I have used it every single day since I bought it, so, I think it has lived a full life and I have definitely got my money's worth.
When I first got it, Vegan Chickie also bought a new camera while overseas, and we decided to send each other 'pic of the day', which would be a photo of something that we had seen or done each day with a description of the circumstances that led to the photo being taken.
It was a great way to have daily contact and be connected with each other's lives. Our photography has improved over time and I think both of us have taken some pretty spectacular shots.
Quite strange that for the last two weeks, Adoring Husband has been researching new cameras. His intuition must have been tuned in ... he DOES have that strange electrical energy around him ... maybe he could sense that it was ready to die??!!
So he has already emailed some camera details to me and has some good ideas about what is available and what costs we are looking at. If money was no object... oh my goodness! The fun I could have!
I am feeling very sad that my camera has gone to camera heaven, but I am very excited about making friends with a new one!
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Educated Guesses
I have a friend who was told three weeks before her wedding that she should cancel it because she wouldn't live another two weeks. That was 8 years ago. She didn't cancel her wedding, she still has the same medical condition, however, her mantra is now 'Doctors only make educated guesses'.
When my father was taken by ambulance to Gladstone Hospital after being bitten by a brown snake, the doctors told my mother 'Don't worry, we have never lost a brown snake bite victim yet'. He died two weeks later due to their negligence. They paid a high price for it, but of course that didn't bring my father back.
Twenty years ago, I received a phone call at 10pm from my doctor telling me that I had stage four cervical cancer and that he had made an urgent appointment with a Specialist for the very next morning that I MUST attend. That following afternoon I was told that my tests were clear and I was perfectly healthy.
Last year Adoring Husband and I were told by her doctor, that his mother had bone cancer and all they could do was try to make her comfortable for the few weeks that she had left. The following day she was miraculously cured and her doctor was too busy to see us.
Another friend was told the dark irritation on his neck was caused by his collar rubbing there. Two years later, a specialist took one look at it and performed urgent surgery to remove a melanoma with a deep root system and it required 24 stitches which has left a major scar on his neck/throat.
A man I know was told he had RSI and required surgery on his wrist. Somebody suggested that he try a chiropractor and it turns out that he had a pinched nerve that was affecting his arm and wrist. Three appointments with a chiropractor and he was cured.
A female friend was treated on and off for 18 months for what she was told was recurring thrush, when finally it was discovered that she had cancer of the vulva. Luckily, it wasn't too late for her.
These are just seven examples that I can think of - off the top of my head, where doctors have been very wrong. I'm sure that if I thought about it for a bit longer, I could come up with many more examples.
When I first went to a doctor in Sydney to have my Hyperthyroidism diagnosed, I sat in the chair watching the doctor study a computer screen for ten minutes, before I suggested to her that I might have an over active thyroid. She looked it up on the computer and then sent me for the appropriate tests.
I don't trust doctors, not just for the reasons above and it would take too long to explain all of the other reasons. I believe that doctors write prescriptions too quickly to treat our conditions and don't take the time to explain the short term or long term side effects.
I believe that most people don't understand their own medical conditions and trust that the doctor will give them the best treatment available. In this day and age, with all the information available to us, we should all be experts in our own health.
We should be aware of all the different types of treatment available and not just blindly take any medication that's prescribed. We should be more interested in curing our illness, rather than taking something to mask the symptoms.
I believe that fresh healthy food, clean water, regular light exercise, maintaining a healthy weight and a happy life is the best prevention for a lot of medical conditions.
I also believe that, at the very least, we should combine our doctor's advice with alternate methods like Naturopathy, Chinese Medicine, Herbal remedies etc., and always ask lots of questions of your doctor.
I absolutely believe, like my friend at the beginning of this post, that doctors only make educated guesses and I would NEVER put blind faith in those guesses.
When my father was taken by ambulance to Gladstone Hospital after being bitten by a brown snake, the doctors told my mother 'Don't worry, we have never lost a brown snake bite victim yet'. He died two weeks later due to their negligence. They paid a high price for it, but of course that didn't bring my father back.
Twenty years ago, I received a phone call at 10pm from my doctor telling me that I had stage four cervical cancer and that he had made an urgent appointment with a Specialist for the very next morning that I MUST attend. That following afternoon I was told that my tests were clear and I was perfectly healthy.
Last year Adoring Husband and I were told by her doctor, that his mother had bone cancer and all they could do was try to make her comfortable for the few weeks that she had left. The following day she was miraculously cured and her doctor was too busy to see us.
Another friend was told the dark irritation on his neck was caused by his collar rubbing there. Two years later, a specialist took one look at it and performed urgent surgery to remove a melanoma with a deep root system and it required 24 stitches which has left a major scar on his neck/throat.
A man I know was told he had RSI and required surgery on his wrist. Somebody suggested that he try a chiropractor and it turns out that he had a pinched nerve that was affecting his arm and wrist. Three appointments with a chiropractor and he was cured.
A female friend was treated on and off for 18 months for what she was told was recurring thrush, when finally it was discovered that she had cancer of the vulva. Luckily, it wasn't too late for her.
These are just seven examples that I can think of - off the top of my head, where doctors have been very wrong. I'm sure that if I thought about it for a bit longer, I could come up with many more examples.
When I first went to a doctor in Sydney to have my Hyperthyroidism diagnosed, I sat in the chair watching the doctor study a computer screen for ten minutes, before I suggested to her that I might have an over active thyroid. She looked it up on the computer and then sent me for the appropriate tests.
I don't trust doctors, not just for the reasons above and it would take too long to explain all of the other reasons. I believe that doctors write prescriptions too quickly to treat our conditions and don't take the time to explain the short term or long term side effects.
I believe that most people don't understand their own medical conditions and trust that the doctor will give them the best treatment available. In this day and age, with all the information available to us, we should all be experts in our own health.
We should be aware of all the different types of treatment available and not just blindly take any medication that's prescribed. We should be more interested in curing our illness, rather than taking something to mask the symptoms.
I believe that fresh healthy food, clean water, regular light exercise, maintaining a healthy weight and a happy life is the best prevention for a lot of medical conditions.
I also believe that, at the very least, we should combine our doctor's advice with alternate methods like Naturopathy, Chinese Medicine, Herbal remedies etc., and always ask lots of questions of your doctor.
I absolutely believe, like my friend at the beginning of this post, that doctors only make educated guesses and I would NEVER put blind faith in those guesses.
Rainbow Connection
I love frogs.
Vegan Chickie fell in love with them in her childhood after her Nan placed a green tree frog in her hand one day. Through buying ornamental frogs as gifts for her, I developed a deeper appreciation of them, and now collect them myself.
Everybody in the family either collected something or obsessively supported a football team, so they were very easy to buy gifts for at Christmas, birthdays, anniversaries etc.,
My sister collected giraffes. My niece collected dalmatians. My youngest daughter was a Penrith supporter. Number one son supported Balmain NRL club (who later became Wests Tigers), Adoring Husband was a Cronulla Sharks supporter and Nan supported the Broncos.
It was my turn to choose something to collect. I wanted something that would be difficult to find. Something that people would really have to search to find. So I chose geckos.
From that moment on, geckos were EVERYWHERE! You just don't see things until you start looking!
Even though I have an impressive and lovely collection of geckos and I DO love them. My love for frogs is much stronger.
I have no idea how many I have, but they are scattered throughout the house and the garden and from where I sit right now, I can see 26 different ornamental frogs. I'm not obsessed, although it probably wouldn't take much for me to become that way!
Here are just a few of my frogs:
I obsessively hunt around my garden for green frogs and take photos at every opportunity:
One of my favourite songs is Rainbow Connection by Kermit The Frog, but that's enough sharing for today!
Thursday, March 17, 2011
BFF
I miss my friend.
My first husband dragged me, kicking and screaming, to a town in the middle of country NSW in 1984.
There were many reasons for me hating the idea of taking my family to this town and I was worried for their safety, but within a very short time, I fell in love with the people and the town and couldn't even consider the thought of leaving.
I eventually spent 21 years there.
In my second year there I met BGWLBH (You remember her! Beautiful Girl With the Long Blonde Hair).
Happy, vibrant, beautiful, tall, slender, blonde, full of energy, the life of the party, with a fabulous circle of partying friends, an amazing career and the most contagious positive attitude.
She was loving, supportive, generous and loyal and our friendship developed slowly, but strengthened over time.
We went through a lot together. Good stuff and bad stuff. We laughed a lot. We cried a bit. We danced. We sang. We flirted and teased. We were the Trivia Queens and the Pictionary Champions. Our road trips were epic. We shopped til we dropped. We laughed some more.
I miss us.
It's been six years since I left the town. After I moved to Sydney, I still flew back there every three months to spend a week and catch up. BGWLBH took three months long service leave and spent it in Sydney with us.
Now that I have moved so far away, we are lucky if we get to see each other once a year. We hardly ever speak to each other. A phone call every 6 months. An email once every couple of months. Nothing regular.
I like to think that our friendship is strong enough that we don't need that regular contact. We are there for the important times, when we are in need or to celebrate something big. My kids consider her part of our family.
I haven't seen her for almost a year.
When my little Chicklet was born, BGWLBH was the first person I wanted to share that with and I felt sad that we were so far apart and couldn't hug and squeal and have tears together.
We GET each other. We know what each other is thinking. We are brutally honest with each other. We love each other and we hate each other and everything in between.
I think it's time for a visit.
My first husband dragged me, kicking and screaming, to a town in the middle of country NSW in 1984.
There were many reasons for me hating the idea of taking my family to this town and I was worried for their safety, but within a very short time, I fell in love with the people and the town and couldn't even consider the thought of leaving.
I eventually spent 21 years there.
In my second year there I met BGWLBH (You remember her! Beautiful Girl With the Long Blonde Hair).
Happy, vibrant, beautiful, tall, slender, blonde, full of energy, the life of the party, with a fabulous circle of partying friends, an amazing career and the most contagious positive attitude.
She was loving, supportive, generous and loyal and our friendship developed slowly, but strengthened over time.
We went through a lot together. Good stuff and bad stuff. We laughed a lot. We cried a bit. We danced. We sang. We flirted and teased. We were the Trivia Queens and the Pictionary Champions. Our road trips were epic. We shopped til we dropped. We laughed some more.
I miss us.
It's been six years since I left the town. After I moved to Sydney, I still flew back there every three months to spend a week and catch up. BGWLBH took three months long service leave and spent it in Sydney with us.
Now that I have moved so far away, we are lucky if we get to see each other once a year. We hardly ever speak to each other. A phone call every 6 months. An email once every couple of months. Nothing regular.
I like to think that our friendship is strong enough that we don't need that regular contact. We are there for the important times, when we are in need or to celebrate something big. My kids consider her part of our family.
I haven't seen her for almost a year.
When my little Chicklet was born, BGWLBH was the first person I wanted to share that with and I felt sad that we were so far apart and couldn't hug and squeal and have tears together.
We GET each other. We know what each other is thinking. We are brutally honest with each other. We love each other and we hate each other and everything in between.
I think it's time for a visit.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
A brief note of sadness
I'm feeling a bit sad tonight so my post will be short.
One of my lovely boys from the boat ramp got some bad results from his medical tests on Monday and rather than end up being a burden on anyone in the near future, he attempted to take his own life.
Thank goodness he was unsuccessful and I'm hoping to see him at the hospital tomorrow.
Although he knows how much he means to me, and I remind him every so often, I hope to get the chance to tell him again, because I believe that his family may take him to live somewhere else and I won't get to see him every day, like I have for the last two and a half years.
My boys at the boat ramp bring me the greatest of joys, and I know that I am also going to feel the deepest of lows as the years roll on and I lose them one by one, but I don't want to lose any of them this way.
One of my lovely boys from the boat ramp got some bad results from his medical tests on Monday and rather than end up being a burden on anyone in the near future, he attempted to take his own life.
Thank goodness he was unsuccessful and I'm hoping to see him at the hospital tomorrow.
Although he knows how much he means to me, and I remind him every so often, I hope to get the chance to tell him again, because I believe that his family may take him to live somewhere else and I won't get to see him every day, like I have for the last two and a half years.
My boys at the boat ramp bring me the greatest of joys, and I know that I am also going to feel the deepest of lows as the years roll on and I lose them one by one, but I don't want to lose any of them this way.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
The Beauty in Nature
To remind you that Mother Nature isn't always so angry, these are my photos, all taken locally, of a few wonderful gifts that she has to offer.
Sometimes life gets in the way and can become a little overwhelming. We can easily forget the wonders that are 'out there', so I just wanted to share some of the beauty of nature with you.
Monday, March 14, 2011
It's Official!
Today, I was having a lovely time with Adoring Husband in The Bay, which is a thirty minute drive from our town. We had a number of errands to run and a 'to do' list a mile long, so we worked out which order to do our errands to be time efficient and not have to be in there longer than necessary.
The area has had a lot of rain in the last 24 hours. We had two inches of rain overnight in our town, but on the drive into The Bay, it was obvious that there had been a lot more rain there. The golf course at the halfway mark was completely underwater (so Adoring Husband won't be golfing this week!) and there was some minor localised flooding in other areas.
Adoring Husband and I are not a good shopping team. We always spend more time and money than we plan to and we do a lot of window shopping.
Put us in a furniture shop and we can be there for hours testing lounge and dining suites, beds, recliner rockers, outdoor furniture, big screen televisions and sound systems, office chairs, stove tops, refrigerators, you name it, we check it out!
We don't NEED any of these things, but our eyes glaze over and all our common sense goes out the window. Once inside the shop, we convince ourselves that it might be time for a new bed or other piece of furniture. We test everything out, compare prices and talk the salesperson down to a better price. Then we walk away saying that we need to discuss it further.
Luckily, once we are out in the fresh air and our minds are cleared, within about 30 minutes, we remember that we don't need ANYTHING!
Today, we tested beds. We actually WILL need a new bed soon as ours is seven years old and will need replacing inside the next two years. We both have dodgy backs, so a good mattress is high on our priority list.
We sat on a couple of beds to test the firmness, and were promptly told by the salesperson, that we MUST lie down to get a real feel for comfort. I was happy to obey these orders!
As I lay down on the most perfectly divine mattress that made me feel like I was floating on a cloud (not that I have ever floated on a cloud, but it's how I imagine it would be!), the heavens opened up outside and it was impossible for us to leave the store.
There I lay, listening to the rain on the roof and feeling the bed give me a big snuggly hug. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the moment. **sigh** Suddenly, Adoring Husband was asking for a 'best price' and the salesperson was madly tapping away at his computer keyboard!
JUST WALK AWAY!! We walked away, agreeing to discuss it further and the salesperson gave us til 5pm to decide on that particular price. It only took five minutes for the fresh air to clear our heads and common sense prevailed once again!
Our final chore for the day was grocery shopping in the supermarket. We hadn't done a good shop since before I went to New Zealand, so there was a lot to get, especially now that I am on a vegetarian diet.
As we walked down the condiments aisle, there in front of me was a young woman, probably in her mid twenties, carrying a brand new little baby. Appearing beside her, was her mother, who bent towards the baby and touched it's face with an obviously 'proud' gleam in her grandmotherly eyes.
In an instant, my eyes welled up with tears and I felt this sob get stuck in my throat! I could see in my mind, my lovely little Chicklet, and it suddenly hit me how much I was missing her and my Vegan Chickie and Bare-chested Chef.
JUST WALK AWAY! I moved as quickly as I could to the end of the aisle and around the corner so that I couldn't see them anymore and blocked them out of my thoughts almost in an instant. Whew!
I was not prepared for this! There should be a handbook available for new grandparents with warnings about this sort of thing!
It's official! Becoming a grandmother turns you into a big soft lump of jelly with no emotional self control! God help me!
The area has had a lot of rain in the last 24 hours. We had two inches of rain overnight in our town, but on the drive into The Bay, it was obvious that there had been a lot more rain there. The golf course at the halfway mark was completely underwater (so Adoring Husband won't be golfing this week!) and there was some minor localised flooding in other areas.
Adoring Husband and I are not a good shopping team. We always spend more time and money than we plan to and we do a lot of window shopping.
Put us in a furniture shop and we can be there for hours testing lounge and dining suites, beds, recliner rockers, outdoor furniture, big screen televisions and sound systems, office chairs, stove tops, refrigerators, you name it, we check it out!
We don't NEED any of these things, but our eyes glaze over and all our common sense goes out the window. Once inside the shop, we convince ourselves that it might be time for a new bed or other piece of furniture. We test everything out, compare prices and talk the salesperson down to a better price. Then we walk away saying that we need to discuss it further.
Luckily, once we are out in the fresh air and our minds are cleared, within about 30 minutes, we remember that we don't need ANYTHING!
Today, we tested beds. We actually WILL need a new bed soon as ours is seven years old and will need replacing inside the next two years. We both have dodgy backs, so a good mattress is high on our priority list.
We sat on a couple of beds to test the firmness, and were promptly told by the salesperson, that we MUST lie down to get a real feel for comfort. I was happy to obey these orders!
As I lay down on the most perfectly divine mattress that made me feel like I was floating on a cloud (not that I have ever floated on a cloud, but it's how I imagine it would be!), the heavens opened up outside and it was impossible for us to leave the store.
There I lay, listening to the rain on the roof and feeling the bed give me a big snuggly hug. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the moment. **sigh** Suddenly, Adoring Husband was asking for a 'best price' and the salesperson was madly tapping away at his computer keyboard!
JUST WALK AWAY!! We walked away, agreeing to discuss it further and the salesperson gave us til 5pm to decide on that particular price. It only took five minutes for the fresh air to clear our heads and common sense prevailed once again!
Our final chore for the day was grocery shopping in the supermarket. We hadn't done a good shop since before I went to New Zealand, so there was a lot to get, especially now that I am on a vegetarian diet.
As we walked down the condiments aisle, there in front of me was a young woman, probably in her mid twenties, carrying a brand new little baby. Appearing beside her, was her mother, who bent towards the baby and touched it's face with an obviously 'proud' gleam in her grandmotherly eyes.
In an instant, my eyes welled up with tears and I felt this sob get stuck in my throat! I could see in my mind, my lovely little Chicklet, and it suddenly hit me how much I was missing her and my Vegan Chickie and Bare-chested Chef.
JUST WALK AWAY! I moved as quickly as I could to the end of the aisle and around the corner so that I couldn't see them anymore and blocked them out of my thoughts almost in an instant. Whew!
I was not prepared for this! There should be a handbook available for new grandparents with warnings about this sort of thing!
It's official! Becoming a grandmother turns you into a big soft lump of jelly with no emotional self control! God help me!
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Adoring Husband blogs on
I think Adoring Husband has decided that 'if you can't beat em, join em!'
He sits patiently beside me on the couch every evening while I update my blog. He talks constantly, asks a million questions about everything and anything not related to my blog, and about nothing in particular. He is forever blurting out "Did you see that!?" about something on the television (while quite obviously, my eyes are on my computer screen, not the TV screen), and is generally like a small child trying to get his mother's attention.
Sometimes, I turn my head and stare at him blankly, hoping that he will read my look as a "can't you see that I am updating my blog and am not listening to your babble?" look. Alas, he never does, so I am teaching myself to fake a look of genuine interest. So far, it seems to be working.
Last night, while I was typing away on my keyboard, I looked up to see Adoring Husband sitting at the dining room table with his laptop. I asked "What are you doing?". He replied "Never you mind!"
I desperately tried to think of some questions to ask him, to give him a taste of his own medicine, but my mind went blank.
Try this one.
"Are you writing a blog?" Answer - "Never you mind."
"What happens if the computer shuts down and you lose everything that you wrote?"
Answer - "Don't even joke about it"
"What happens if I ask a lot of questions and you lose your train of thought?"
Answer - "Whatever"
"What happens ..." Answer - "Very funny! Stop it."
Twenty minutes later, he shuts down his computer and comes back to sit beside me.
"Are you finished?" Answer - "Yep"
"Did you email me the link" Answer - "Of course I did!"
So I go searching for the email.
I'm thinking to myself (with an obvious guilty conscience) ... has he written a blog complaining that he can't get my attention when I am sitting right beside him on the couch? That I spend too much time on my laptop? Perhaps he's asking me a question in the blog, because he thinks it's the best way to get my attention, instead of just speaking!
I find it both hilarious and sad that I had these thoughts!
I found his blog and hesitantly began reading. I began giggling at the first paragraph and almost had tears of laughter by the end. I'm adding the link here, but I am warning you that you may not find it as funny as I do.
It's a private joke that I have with Adoring Husband about his bad energy flow that causes things to go wrong. Electrical and electronic gadgets break. He buys something in a box and there'll be a part missing. He orders something online and it goes missing. He buys clothes and the buttons fall off. He buys a top of the range phone and the function that he most wants to use won't work. He'll book us into a restaurant and then take us to the wrong one.
If something can go wrong it will ... or as I say ... "If it's going to happen, it's going to happen to Adoring Husband".
Here is his take on it:
http://basa-lifeslittletests.blogspot.com/
I'm hoping that this is not a one-off and that he will continue with his blog. I find his written words hilarious and entertaining. We met in an internet chat room and that's how he caught my attention ... by making me laugh hysterically every time we chatted. (Although his profile photo showed him wearing speedos ... that was almost a deal breaker!).
Now Adoring Husband blogs on ... maybe it will give me 20 minutes of peace every night??!
He sits patiently beside me on the couch every evening while I update my blog. He talks constantly, asks a million questions about everything and anything not related to my blog, and about nothing in particular. He is forever blurting out "Did you see that!?" about something on the television (while quite obviously, my eyes are on my computer screen, not the TV screen), and is generally like a small child trying to get his mother's attention.
Sometimes, I turn my head and stare at him blankly, hoping that he will read my look as a "can't you see that I am updating my blog and am not listening to your babble?" look. Alas, he never does, so I am teaching myself to fake a look of genuine interest. So far, it seems to be working.
Last night, while I was typing away on my keyboard, I looked up to see Adoring Husband sitting at the dining room table with his laptop. I asked "What are you doing?". He replied "Never you mind!"
I desperately tried to think of some questions to ask him, to give him a taste of his own medicine, but my mind went blank.
Try this one.
"Are you writing a blog?" Answer - "Never you mind."
"What happens if the computer shuts down and you lose everything that you wrote?"
Answer - "Don't even joke about it"
"What happens if I ask a lot of questions and you lose your train of thought?"
Answer - "Whatever"
"What happens ..." Answer - "Very funny! Stop it."
Twenty minutes later, he shuts down his computer and comes back to sit beside me.
"Are you finished?" Answer - "Yep"
"Did you email me the link" Answer - "Of course I did!"
So I go searching for the email.
I'm thinking to myself (with an obvious guilty conscience) ... has he written a blog complaining that he can't get my attention when I am sitting right beside him on the couch? That I spend too much time on my laptop? Perhaps he's asking me a question in the blog, because he thinks it's the best way to get my attention, instead of just speaking!
I find it both hilarious and sad that I had these thoughts!
I found his blog and hesitantly began reading. I began giggling at the first paragraph and almost had tears of laughter by the end. I'm adding the link here, but I am warning you that you may not find it as funny as I do.
It's a private joke that I have with Adoring Husband about his bad energy flow that causes things to go wrong. Electrical and electronic gadgets break. He buys something in a box and there'll be a part missing. He orders something online and it goes missing. He buys clothes and the buttons fall off. He buys a top of the range phone and the function that he most wants to use won't work. He'll book us into a restaurant and then take us to the wrong one.
If something can go wrong it will ... or as I say ... "If it's going to happen, it's going to happen to Adoring Husband".
Here is his take on it:
http://basa-lifeslittletests.blogspot.com/
I'm hoping that this is not a one-off and that he will continue with his blog. I find his written words hilarious and entertaining. We met in an internet chat room and that's how he caught my attention ... by making me laugh hysterically every time we chatted. (Although his profile photo showed him wearing speedos ... that was almost a deal breaker!).
Now Adoring Husband blogs on ... maybe it will give me 20 minutes of peace every night??!
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Market Day
Today was market day in my lovely little town.
It had rained all night and I was hesitant to pedal down to the park. I usually pack everything into the rear basket of my trike and set up at one of the permanent picnic tables in the park. I wondered how wet the park grounds were and I also wondered if it would continue to rain throughout the morning.
In the end, I decided to take the risk. I arrived right on 6.30 am, closely followed by my lovely assistant, the almost 70 yr old Aussie H, who also pedalled her trike and parked it beside mine.
Together, we took about 20 minutes to set up the stall, and right on cue, Adoring Husband arrived with our take-away coffee from the bakery. We settled back with our folding chairs and prepared for the onslaught!
The best part of our markets is catching up with all of the locals.
Unfortunately, none of them want to buy anything (to be fair, a lot of them bought my merchandise when I first started selling about 6 months ago). Instead they come to my table and stand around chatting, which is just lovely and is something that really gives me a buzz.
Sometimes, when there is a lull in the crowd, other stall holders wander over for a chat. Of course, you have to realize that our little market day only has a grand total of 25 stalls (maybe 35 on a fine weekend in tourist season!), so it's not like any of us are ever run off our feet.
Today was quite busy, as far as crowds go, but it seemed that nobody wanted to spend any money! The markets, today, was somewhere for people to pass the time and window shop. Something to do before the rains came again. Even the other stall holders were complaining about how slow the spending was ... although the 'Nut Man' on the stall next to mine, was pretty busy. Even I bought some raw nuts from him!
The weather remained threatening all day, but it didn't rain. The relative of one of my local ladies bought a bracelet from me, which was my sole sale for the day. Sad but true.
We are all looking forward to next month, which includes Easter. Our town has a big Easter Fishing Classic Competition which is so popular that our population triples and we always hold a market on Easter Saturday. It should be HUGE! Let's hope the weather is good to us!
So, after four hours, I sold one child's bracelet and spent a total of $18 at other stalls, bought an egg in bread at the SES kitchen, 2 take-away coffees from the bakery and $8 for the cost of the stall site. Pretty sure that works out to be a fairly heavy loss for the day ... financially.
Spiritually, it was a MOST successful day. I sold something that I made with my own two hands. I spent a few hours with my lovely Aussie H. I caught up with about twenty locals. I was out in the fresh air. I helped other stall holders by buying their goods. I got to brag about my lovely little Chicklet by passing round some photos. I got some exercise riding my trike. I smiled a LOT.
So much value in one happy market day!
It had rained all night and I was hesitant to pedal down to the park. I usually pack everything into the rear basket of my trike and set up at one of the permanent picnic tables in the park. I wondered how wet the park grounds were and I also wondered if it would continue to rain throughout the morning.
In the end, I decided to take the risk. I arrived right on 6.30 am, closely followed by my lovely assistant, the almost 70 yr old Aussie H, who also pedalled her trike and parked it beside mine.
Together, we took about 20 minutes to set up the stall, and right on cue, Adoring Husband arrived with our take-away coffee from the bakery. We settled back with our folding chairs and prepared for the onslaught!
The best part of our markets is catching up with all of the locals.
Unfortunately, none of them want to buy anything (to be fair, a lot of them bought my merchandise when I first started selling about 6 months ago). Instead they come to my table and stand around chatting, which is just lovely and is something that really gives me a buzz.
Sometimes, when there is a lull in the crowd, other stall holders wander over for a chat. Of course, you have to realize that our little market day only has a grand total of 25 stalls (maybe 35 on a fine weekend in tourist season!), so it's not like any of us are ever run off our feet.
Today was quite busy, as far as crowds go, but it seemed that nobody wanted to spend any money! The markets, today, was somewhere for people to pass the time and window shop. Something to do before the rains came again. Even the other stall holders were complaining about how slow the spending was ... although the 'Nut Man' on the stall next to mine, was pretty busy. Even I bought some raw nuts from him!
The weather remained threatening all day, but it didn't rain. The relative of one of my local ladies bought a bracelet from me, which was my sole sale for the day. Sad but true.
We are all looking forward to next month, which includes Easter. Our town has a big Easter Fishing Classic Competition which is so popular that our population triples and we always hold a market on Easter Saturday. It should be HUGE! Let's hope the weather is good to us!
So, after four hours, I sold one child's bracelet and spent a total of $18 at other stalls, bought an egg in bread at the SES kitchen, 2 take-away coffees from the bakery and $8 for the cost of the stall site. Pretty sure that works out to be a fairly heavy loss for the day ... financially.
Spiritually, it was a MOST successful day. I sold something that I made with my own two hands. I spent a few hours with my lovely Aussie H. I caught up with about twenty locals. I was out in the fresh air. I helped other stall holders by buying their goods. I got to brag about my lovely little Chicklet by passing round some photos. I got some exercise riding my trike. I smiled a LOT.
So much value in one happy market day!
Friday, March 11, 2011
Yay for NRL 2011
Anybody who knows me, knows that I LOVE NRL footy. I love it so much, I incorporated references to football in our wedding vows!
This weekend marks the beginning of the 2011 NRL season and I am sitting here in front of the television watching the end of the Roosters v Rabbitohs game.
I am a huge Broncos fan. Unfortunately they lost against the Cowboys tonight, so I am disappointed. I am also disappointed because the Rabbitohs lost against the Roosters!
I'm in the footy tipping competition at the local pub and these results makes me nil from two. Not a good start to the year! Ugh!
Adoring Husband is an avid Cronulla Sharks supporter, so we attended most of the their home games when we lived in Sydney because the stadium was about ten minutes from home. It's one of the few things that we miss by living here in our little pocket of paradise.
My favourite form of the game is State of Origin football. When it's QLD (Cane Toads) v NSW (Cockroaches). Adoring Husband is a NSW supporter because he was born and bred down that way. I barrack for QLD because I was born here. There is a very healthy rivalry in our house from May thru to July every year because that's when these games are played.
We fly the flags on the outside of the house, on the car and on my trike. Game night, we dress up in the all the attire and go to the pub to watch the game. We bag each other out the whole time.
Luckily for me, QLD has been on a winning streak for the last few years, so I have had bragging rights and make the most of it at every opportunity!
So from now until September, I will be spending most weekends in front of the plasma big screen watching my beloved footy and driving the Psychotic Dogs mad when they can't figure out why I am jumping up and down off my couch and screaming at the television.
Yay for the 2011 NRL footy season!! I am so excited that it's finally here!
PS A few days ago I mentioned that one of the Lovely Layers had to visit the vet ... for those of you who care, she is fine! She didn't even get stressed by her drive in the car or being prodded by the vet because she hasn't stopped laying even for a day!
This weekend marks the beginning of the 2011 NRL season and I am sitting here in front of the television watching the end of the Roosters v Rabbitohs game.
I am a huge Broncos fan. Unfortunately they lost against the Cowboys tonight, so I am disappointed. I am also disappointed because the Rabbitohs lost against the Roosters!
I'm in the footy tipping competition at the local pub and these results makes me nil from two. Not a good start to the year! Ugh!
Adoring Husband is an avid Cronulla Sharks supporter, so we attended most of the their home games when we lived in Sydney because the stadium was about ten minutes from home. It's one of the few things that we miss by living here in our little pocket of paradise.
My favourite form of the game is State of Origin football. When it's QLD (Cane Toads) v NSW (Cockroaches). Adoring Husband is a NSW supporter because he was born and bred down that way. I barrack for QLD because I was born here. There is a very healthy rivalry in our house from May thru to July every year because that's when these games are played.
We fly the flags on the outside of the house, on the car and on my trike. Game night, we dress up in the all the attire and go to the pub to watch the game. We bag each other out the whole time.
Luckily for me, QLD has been on a winning streak for the last few years, so I have had bragging rights and make the most of it at every opportunity!
So from now until September, I will be spending most weekends in front of the plasma big screen watching my beloved footy and driving the Psychotic Dogs mad when they can't figure out why I am jumping up and down off my couch and screaming at the television.
Yay for the 2011 NRL footy season!! I am so excited that it's finally here!
PS A few days ago I mentioned that one of the Lovely Layers had to visit the vet ... for those of you who care, she is fine! She didn't even get stressed by her drive in the car or being prodded by the vet because she hasn't stopped laying even for a day!
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Everybody Has a Story!
"Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier."
I believe that every greeting should include a smile and every meeting should end with a smile. There is always something happening in everybody's life and you never know what the story is behind the face you see in the street.
You don't know what happened to your neighbour this morning. The bus driver may have received some tragic news yesterday. The girl who serves you coffee may have broken up with her boyfriend last night. The Public Servant's teenager may have run away from home last week. The Receptionist may be struggling to pay rent this week. The Teacher may have just missed out on that promotion. The Bank Teller may have to attend a funeral in an hour.
There is a lot of sadness, tragedy, stress, anger and illness in the world. People are affected and react in different ways. People grieve in different ways. Sometimes, they can't afford to take time off work to deal with their issues. Others don't have a support network and are trying to cope on their own.
We can't always treat people with empathy because we don't know what their issue is. How do we know that the stranger needs sympathy? How can we tell that the gym instructor is lonely?
A smile costs nothing and a happy, positive attitude is easy to share.
Who cares if you accidentally put a red sock in with your whites this morning? It's not important that you spilt red wine on the carpet last night. So what if you forgot to charge your mobile phone and the battery is flat? Is it the end of the world if your train was cancelled and the next one made you 10 minutes late for work?
Think about it ... is it so bad that you will still be talking about it as you sit in your rocking chair on the front verandah at the age of 90? Don't sweat the small stuff and figure out what the small stuff is.
Make it your mission to bring a small piece of happiness to the people with whom you interact during your day. Smile. Laugh. Crack a joke. Use your manners and always say 'please' and 'thank you'. Be patient in the queue, whether you are in the car or at the bank.
Give yourself the power to make the world a happier place. Happiness is contagious and it has the power to heal.
I've always believed this, but even more-so now that I have my Boys at the Boat Ramp to help me start my day.
They are always smiling. Always cracking a joke. Greeting both friends and strangers with a smile at every opportunity. There is no anger, no stress and no antagonism towards anybody.
I look forward to seeing them every day and I know that I will leave them with a smile on my face. That, in turn, makes me want to share my happiness with anybody who comes near me.
If everybody with whom I come into contact, gets to share just a small degree of my happiness, and walks away with a smile, then that makes me even happier!
Everybody has a story. For those of us whose story is looking pretty good at the moment ... it's our responsibility to help improve somebody else's story, so spread the love!
Everybody has a story. For those of us whose story is looking pretty good at the moment ... it's our responsibility to help improve somebody else's story, so spread the love!
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
School Reunions
Over the years, almost everyone I know has been invited to a school reunion.
Almost everyone I know has complained about receiving the invitation to their school reunion, while I was secretly envious, and wishing it was my invitation! Sadly, most of them did NOT attend their school reunion.
My Dad worked in 'oil search' so his job involved travelling, not just around Australia, but also to other countries. I have a very limited knowledge of his career in this industry, but I know that he operated a drilling rig and drilled for both oil and for water.
We lived on Brampton Island for a few months way back in the 60s and Dad's job was to drill for water. We lived in one of the resort rooms, which were nothing like they are today. They were more like the little portable units that you find in caravan parks these days.
I remember the Owner/Manager's name as 'Smithy'. He owned a boxer dog that I used to play with on the beach and every Friday night the resort had 'horse races' which involved horses made out of beer or soft drink cans. I was very young at the time, maybe 5 or 6, so I don't remember a lot of detail.
I think I was about six years of age when Mum and Dad bought a caravan so that we could follow Dad around the country in his work travels. It was a 19 foot long brand new Franklin van that Mum towed behind an old lemon and green FJ Holden, and we followed the drilling rig that Dad was driving.
Sometimes Dad would let my brother and I take turns sitting in the passenger seat of the drilling rig. I didn't like it very much because it was loud and bumpy in there. No such thing as air conditioning and they certainly weren't built for comfort!
We travelled as far north as Cairns, south to Geelong, across to Adelaide and as far west as Perth. I attended 17 different schools, which included at one stage, School of the Air and also lessons by correspondence. My lessons would arrive in a big envelope (I can still remember the smell) and I would sit at the table inside the caravan to do my work.
Living 'out bush', we bathed in a half 44 gallon drum, hiked for 100 yards carrying a shovel and roll of toilet paper to go to the toilet and made friends with kookaburras and magpies. At night we used a kerosene lamp or a torch to find our way to a far away tree for toileting and there would be little beady eyes glowing back at us from a distance.
The longest I was ever at one school was the last school I attended. Pine Rivers High School in Strathpine. I was there for about 2 miserable years. So that means that I attended 16 schools over an eight year period, which averages about 6 months per school.
I remember, while living in Cootamundra in 1982, receiving an invitation for a school reunion in Perth, which would be held the following year. Carine High School, which was a brand new school when I attended, was having a 10 yr reunion for the inaugural class of 1973. Unfortunately, I had two young children, we had just bought our first home and couldn't afford for me to travel across the country to attend.
That was my first and last invitation to a reunion. I wonder if the 40 yr reunion will be held in 2013?
I am very envious of people who got to experience their entire education at one school, with the same friends, the same school bus drivers and knowing, at the end of one year, the teachers whose classes they would attend the following year. I envied the familiarity and (my imagined) feeling of security.
I tried to create that for my own children. I wanted them to experience that stability. Of course, they did not enjoy the experience and don't have fond memories of school! The grass is always greener isn't it?!
So, I imagine that the majority of schools that I attended, don't even remember me being there, and if they did, they certainly would have no idea how to contact me now. I did not keep in contact with any of the friends that I made over those years, because we never knew where we would be living from one town to the next and mostly because I was never in a place long enough to form close enough friendships.
If there is anybody out there from Pine Rivers High who knows of a reunion for classes of 1975/76, please let me know. I would love to attend. The same goes for Carine High in Perth for the classes of 1973/74.
Being the 'people watcher' that I am, I imagine a school reunion being a most amazing experience. I have so many high school 'experiences' because I was a naughty teenager, so there are quite a few names that stand out in my memory and old school pals that I would love to catch up with now. They weren't close friends, but the sharing of some experiences creates a bond, however small, and the 'where are they now' scenario is highlighted in my brain.
Oh! The ammunition it would give me for future posts on this blog!!
Almost everyone I know has complained about receiving the invitation to their school reunion, while I was secretly envious, and wishing it was my invitation! Sadly, most of them did NOT attend their school reunion.
My Dad worked in 'oil search' so his job involved travelling, not just around Australia, but also to other countries. I have a very limited knowledge of his career in this industry, but I know that he operated a drilling rig and drilled for both oil and for water.
We lived on Brampton Island for a few months way back in the 60s and Dad's job was to drill for water. We lived in one of the resort rooms, which were nothing like they are today. They were more like the little portable units that you find in caravan parks these days.
I remember the Owner/Manager's name as 'Smithy'. He owned a boxer dog that I used to play with on the beach and every Friday night the resort had 'horse races' which involved horses made out of beer or soft drink cans. I was very young at the time, maybe 5 or 6, so I don't remember a lot of detail.
I think I was about six years of age when Mum and Dad bought a caravan so that we could follow Dad around the country in his work travels. It was a 19 foot long brand new Franklin van that Mum towed behind an old lemon and green FJ Holden, and we followed the drilling rig that Dad was driving.
Sometimes Dad would let my brother and I take turns sitting in the passenger seat of the drilling rig. I didn't like it very much because it was loud and bumpy in there. No such thing as air conditioning and they certainly weren't built for comfort!
We travelled as far north as Cairns, south to Geelong, across to Adelaide and as far west as Perth. I attended 17 different schools, which included at one stage, School of the Air and also lessons by correspondence. My lessons would arrive in a big envelope (I can still remember the smell) and I would sit at the table inside the caravan to do my work.
Living 'out bush', we bathed in a half 44 gallon drum, hiked for 100 yards carrying a shovel and roll of toilet paper to go to the toilet and made friends with kookaburras and magpies. At night we used a kerosene lamp or a torch to find our way to a far away tree for toileting and there would be little beady eyes glowing back at us from a distance.
The longest I was ever at one school was the last school I attended. Pine Rivers High School in Strathpine. I was there for about 2 miserable years. So that means that I attended 16 schools over an eight year period, which averages about 6 months per school.
I remember, while living in Cootamundra in 1982, receiving an invitation for a school reunion in Perth, which would be held the following year. Carine High School, which was a brand new school when I attended, was having a 10 yr reunion for the inaugural class of 1973. Unfortunately, I had two young children, we had just bought our first home and couldn't afford for me to travel across the country to attend.
That was my first and last invitation to a reunion. I wonder if the 40 yr reunion will be held in 2013?
I am very envious of people who got to experience their entire education at one school, with the same friends, the same school bus drivers and knowing, at the end of one year, the teachers whose classes they would attend the following year. I envied the familiarity and (my imagined) feeling of security.
I tried to create that for my own children. I wanted them to experience that stability. Of course, they did not enjoy the experience and don't have fond memories of school! The grass is always greener isn't it?!
So, I imagine that the majority of schools that I attended, don't even remember me being there, and if they did, they certainly would have no idea how to contact me now. I did not keep in contact with any of the friends that I made over those years, because we never knew where we would be living from one town to the next and mostly because I was never in a place long enough to form close enough friendships.
If there is anybody out there from Pine Rivers High who knows of a reunion for classes of 1975/76, please let me know. I would love to attend. The same goes for Carine High in Perth for the classes of 1973/74.
Being the 'people watcher' that I am, I imagine a school reunion being a most amazing experience. I have so many high school 'experiences' because I was a naughty teenager, so there are quite a few names that stand out in my memory and old school pals that I would love to catch up with now. They weren't close friends, but the sharing of some experiences creates a bond, however small, and the 'where are they now' scenario is highlighted in my brain.
Oh! The ammunition it would give me for future posts on this blog!!
Our Perfect Wedding Day
Adoring Husband and I were married last year in April, the day after my 50th birthday. It was (children's births aside) the happiest day of my life. I was positively overflowing with love and joy on that day. We had friends and family travel long distances to attend, and feeling their love, having them share the day, just made it so wonderful and special. These words simply do not convey how amazing the day was for me.
Adoring Husband proposed to me on a karaoke stage, in the same pub, believe it or not, where he had met his first two wives! We had gone out for dinner with friends, so they were there to witness this proposal and they were pretty excited to be part of it.
He passed a note to the karaoke guy that read "Mick, call me up next. I want to propose to my girlfriend". So Mick calls him up. He hands Adoring Husband the microphone, who promptly gets down on one knee and asks me to marry him. I cannot, for the life of me, remember the words he used, but I do remember pausing, looking around at the crowd and then replying "absolutely", to which they all clapped and cheered.
I also recall telling Adoring Husband (or Adoring Fiance as he was back then) that I was disappointed that it wasn't a sober proposal.
We planned our wedding to go ahead a year later in Griffith, where I had lived for 22 years prior to moving to Sydney. Due to circumstances that I won't go into here, we had to cancel those plans and our wedding was postponed indefinitely.
So, last year, for my 50th birthday, my best friend, who you met in my most recent post and who once again will be known as Beautiful Girl with the Long Blonde Hair (aka BGWLBH), decided that she wanted to do something special for my birthday and shouted me a week in Surfer's Paradise.
Because of this, Vegan Chickie had to reveal that she had already planned a surprise visit with The Bare-chested Chef for my birthday.
Adoring Husband then decided that this might be a great opportunity to plan our wedding! We had six weeks to plan it. The first thing we did was contact the first Celebrant that we found on the internet. She was booked solid for a year, but had JUST had a cancellation for the exact weekend that we wanted. From there, every plan fell beautifully in place, as if it was always meant to be.
I wanted a wedding in the park by the river, followed by lunch at the pub. My friends and Adoring Husband decided that we should have something better than that. I raised my hands in the air and said "If that's the case, you can plan it without me. I don't want to know ANYTHING about it because I don't want any stress. Just do it!"
Two weeks before the wedding BGWLBH and I met in Surfer's Paradise. On the first day, we went shopping for the wedding dress and put together the perfect outfit in one day for half the price that we expected. That meant we could shop and play for the rest of the week! Wahoo for us!
It was an amazing week and we had a blast together. The weather was great. We had a nice win at the casino, so we got to do even more shopping and we ate at a different restaurant every night. We hadn't had any girlie fun like that in years, so it was good for us.
We drove home at the end of the week to find Vegan Chickie and The Bare-chested Chef waiting for us. What a happy re-union that was!
There was a Hen's night. Friends and family filtered in over the following days. A neighbour offered their house for guests to use while they were away, which was a wonderful gesture.
The day before the wedding was my 50th birthday. We had 50 guests come to the local pub for a birthday dinner. It was a great night and Adoring Husband had provided the most beautiful cake that I had ever seen. My local girlfriends had made up a basket with silly gifts that I had to open one by one and we had a few short speeches and some laughs.
The perfect cake!
Finally, the big day arrived. As a surprise, Adoring Husband had arranged for our neighbour with a white convertible Mercedes, to be our driver. He picked us both up at the house and drove us to the park. It was a glorious day. The birds were singing, the sun was shining, the water was glistening in the sunlight and all our friends were gathered there waiting for us to arrive.
The Celebrant had sprinkled rose petals along the pathway and we walked (and danced a little) to the sound of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough". We reached the Celebrant and made our vows, which included some fun stuff about football and golf, but also the serious and romantic stuff. We signed the registry to the music "I Wanna Grow Old With You" from the movie 'The Wedding Singer' and then finished with "You Make Me So Very Happy" amid the cheers, applause and congratulatory hugs from our friends and family.
Off we went to a friend's house, where the secret wedding reception had been planned and as we walked up the driveway, there were all the portable gazebos and tables decorated in my favourite colour, purple. It was so beautifully done. They had gone to so much trouble to make it the way they thought I would like it. Not too much and not too little. It was just right!
We drank, we ate, we danced, we made speeches. My sister, Squirt, made a speech that brought everyone to tears. Another perfectly beautiful cake was provided. We danced some more and a few even sang ... badly I might add.
The happiest day of my life :o)
After about 10 hours, our wedding and reception was over.
It was so much more than I could ever have imagined. The work that so many of my friends put into making it the perfect day, was above and beyond anything that I could hope for. Everybody was happy and smiling and laughing and thoroughly enjoyed themselves.
My heart overflows with joy whenever I think of that day. It was, indeed, our perfect wedding day!
Adoring Husband proposed to me on a karaoke stage, in the same pub, believe it or not, where he had met his first two wives! We had gone out for dinner with friends, so they were there to witness this proposal and they were pretty excited to be part of it.
He passed a note to the karaoke guy that read "Mick, call me up next. I want to propose to my girlfriend". So Mick calls him up. He hands Adoring Husband the microphone, who promptly gets down on one knee and asks me to marry him. I cannot, for the life of me, remember the words he used, but I do remember pausing, looking around at the crowd and then replying "absolutely", to which they all clapped and cheered.
I also recall telling Adoring Husband (or Adoring Fiance as he was back then) that I was disappointed that it wasn't a sober proposal.
We planned our wedding to go ahead a year later in Griffith, where I had lived for 22 years prior to moving to Sydney. Due to circumstances that I won't go into here, we had to cancel those plans and our wedding was postponed indefinitely.
So, last year, for my 50th birthday, my best friend, who you met in my most recent post and who once again will be known as Beautiful Girl with the Long Blonde Hair (aka BGWLBH), decided that she wanted to do something special for my birthday and shouted me a week in Surfer's Paradise.
Because of this, Vegan Chickie had to reveal that she had already planned a surprise visit with The Bare-chested Chef for my birthday.
Adoring Husband then decided that this might be a great opportunity to plan our wedding! We had six weeks to plan it. The first thing we did was contact the first Celebrant that we found on the internet. She was booked solid for a year, but had JUST had a cancellation for the exact weekend that we wanted. From there, every plan fell beautifully in place, as if it was always meant to be.
I wanted a wedding in the park by the river, followed by lunch at the pub. My friends and Adoring Husband decided that we should have something better than that. I raised my hands in the air and said "If that's the case, you can plan it without me. I don't want to know ANYTHING about it because I don't want any stress. Just do it!"
Two weeks before the wedding BGWLBH and I met in Surfer's Paradise. On the first day, we went shopping for the wedding dress and put together the perfect outfit in one day for half the price that we expected. That meant we could shop and play for the rest of the week! Wahoo for us!
It was an amazing week and we had a blast together. The weather was great. We had a nice win at the casino, so we got to do even more shopping and we ate at a different restaurant every night. We hadn't had any girlie fun like that in years, so it was good for us.
We drove home at the end of the week to find Vegan Chickie and The Bare-chested Chef waiting for us. What a happy re-union that was!
There was a Hen's night. Friends and family filtered in over the following days. A neighbour offered their house for guests to use while they were away, which was a wonderful gesture.
The day before the wedding was my 50th birthday. We had 50 guests come to the local pub for a birthday dinner. It was a great night and Adoring Husband had provided the most beautiful cake that I had ever seen. My local girlfriends had made up a basket with silly gifts that I had to open one by one and we had a few short speeches and some laughs.
The perfect cake!Finally, the big day arrived. As a surprise, Adoring Husband had arranged for our neighbour with a white convertible Mercedes, to be our driver. He picked us both up at the house and drove us to the park. It was a glorious day. The birds were singing, the sun was shining, the water was glistening in the sunlight and all our friends were gathered there waiting for us to arrive.
The Celebrant had sprinkled rose petals along the pathway and we walked (and danced a little) to the sound of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough". We reached the Celebrant and made our vows, which included some fun stuff about football and golf, but also the serious and romantic stuff. We signed the registry to the music "I Wanna Grow Old With You" from the movie 'The Wedding Singer' and then finished with "You Make Me So Very Happy" amid the cheers, applause and congratulatory hugs from our friends and family.
Off we went to a friend's house, where the secret wedding reception had been planned and as we walked up the driveway, there were all the portable gazebos and tables decorated in my favourite colour, purple. It was so beautifully done. They had gone to so much trouble to make it the way they thought I would like it. Not too much and not too little. It was just right!
We drank, we ate, we danced, we made speeches. My sister, Squirt, made a speech that brought everyone to tears. Another perfectly beautiful cake was provided. We danced some more and a few even sang ... badly I might add.
The happiest day of my life :o)After about 10 hours, our wedding and reception was over.
It was so much more than I could ever have imagined. The work that so many of my friends put into making it the perfect day, was above and beyond anything that I could hope for. Everybody was happy and smiling and laughing and thoroughly enjoyed themselves.
My heart overflows with joy whenever I think of that day. It was, indeed, our perfect wedding day!
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Arty Farty Creator!
Wow! I can't believe how today got away from me!
I began the day by taking photos of my jewellery. A prospective customer asked me to email some photos of jewellery I had made that I hadn't yet posted on facebook. Until now, I've taken plain photos with a black background but I thought I should be a bit more creative this time.
So, I grabbed items from around the house that I thought I could use as props and took them with me out into the sunshine, along with my camera.
I'm pretty happy with the results ... obviously not professional, but they show off my jewellery quite well. (click on my facebook badge on the right)
I spent a number of hours creating a slideshow, that I hoped I could email to this person, but it turned out to be too big to email.
It then took a bit of time to email the photos separately to this person, with individual information for each photo.
I cooked dinner after that! Fajitas. Thank you Bare-chested Chef for the fabulous recipe!
Of course, I had to then upload the photos to facebook and tag the information on them.
Now I am here!
It's hard work being an arty farty creator!
I've always been quite artistic and creative. My first memory of learning to draw is around the age of 4, when a friend's neighbour taught me how to draw a cowboy with chaps and boots, a gun holster with gun, a vest and kerchief tied around the neck and the big cowboy hat. I found it so easy and I must have drawn hundreds of cowboys on every piece of paper, blackboard and flat piece of dirt I could find!
At school, I always got top marks for my art assignments and received very positive comments like my favourite in year 10, "These are the most beautiful and sensitive drawings that I've seen in a school art project" or "I hope to see you go further with your art, in a professional basis, when school is over".
My big plan was to become a Commercial Artist, but, as my big plans often did in those days, they fizzled away to nothing.
I did a bit of drawing and sketching over the years. In 1981, I enrolled in an art course and then promptly fell pregnant with my third child. I didn't think I was capable of being pregnant, participating in an art course, caring for a child (my first had passed away) and a husband effectively, so I canned the course.
In 1997, I enrolled in another course to learn oil painting. I did this course for 4 months and completed one large oil painting and few smaller ones. Just as I finished the large painting, my father passed away, and that drained all of my motivation to do anything artistic or creative for a long time. I still, to this day, have not touched my oil paints, but am slowly convincing myself to consider the option!
Then in 2005, my Mum passed away suddenly. On the way home from (interstate) her funeral, in a little town called "Johns River", my girlfriend (who shall be known as Beautiful Girl With the Long Blonde Hair, or BGWLBH) (private joke) and I stopped at the local markets.
There, for sale, on one of the stalls, was a bracelet made out of pink beads, pearls and charms. BGWLBH and I argued over who was going to buy it. I played the sympathy card and won. I loved the bracelet and thought that it would be pretty easy to make.
When we returned to Sydney (where I lived at the time), I searched through craft stores for all the resources that I might need and proceeded to make the exact same bracelet that I had bought! It was easy and then it became my therapy. It helped me through a very sad time in my life, after my mother's death had sent me into a dark place, and it kept me on the right side of sane.
Just over two years ago, Adoring Husband bought me my first quality camera and I took up photography. Vegan Chickie is also talented in this field. She and I email a photo to each other every day, of something that we've seen or done with a little story attached. It's a great way to keep in touch and be involved in each other's life.
A local business woman, after seeing examples of my work, hired me to do some photography for a Government funded tourism website. Through that I've been hired for special events and am currently considering a wedding job in October!
So now, I have bought myself some more art equipment and am getting back into drawing and sketching and experimenting with pastels.
I'm feeling particularly arty, farty and creative these days so stay tuned for some arty farty creations!
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