I have been feeling a bit flat and sad today, and I don't know why.
I slept poorly last night and had a couple of dreams about floods. I looked up 'dreaming about floods' and found this ... "If the flood was gentle and the water clear, you will soon see an end to all the worries that have been plaguing you about a certain matter."
So I guess that's a good thing. If the flood waters had washed me away or was torrential and muddy, my dream would have meant something completely different.
Poor Adoring Husband doesn't know what to do with himself with the tennis on all day. He usually has full control of the TV remote, but twice a year, during the Australian Open and Wimbledon, (and sometimes the US Open) I am the boss of the TV! The US and French Open don't thrill me as much, unless there is an Aussie doing incredibly well.
Tonight, he headed to bed before 8pm and now I am sitting on the couch, with the dogs on the 'storm chair', because we had some threatening weather earlier, waiting for the match with two Aussies.
Bernard Tomic plays John Millman. I think the winner of this match has to play Andy Murray in the next round and I don't hold out much hope of an Aussie win there. Andy Murray has been playing too well lately.
I hope John Millman wins tonight.
Thought I might add a little reading matter about our health. I've always thought that I needed a lithe and supple body to be able to practise yoga, but yoga moves can be modified and adapted to suit everyone's capabilities. I found this interesting Yoga shown to boost brain power in older adults. I know that my brain power could use some boosting!
I found these videos on youtube. Nice gentle yoga for beginners and seniors (60+). I've watched both of them, but haven't tried them yet myself. They look pretty basic and not at all painful.
Third Age Yoga for Seniors - episode 1 of 2
Third Age Yoga for Seniors - episode 2 of 2
I always like how I feel after 20 minutes of yoga, but I've never been able to get into a regular habit with it. I might try and make that one of my goals this year. I'll add it to my 'life workbook' and my 'shining year calendar'.
Anyway, here I am still writing and the tennis match I've been waiting for, is half over! John Millman needs my support!
Nite all.
Saturday, January 23, 2016
Friday, January 22, 2016
Ending The Week
I had a lovely morning catching up with The Motivator.
I had a lovely evening catching up with the Bowls Club poker machines and my wonderful friends at the Bowls Club.
I am enjoying the end of the day watching Nick Kyrgios play in the Australian Open. He lost the first two sets but is playing like a champion now, having won the third set and I feel like he is in control in the fourth set.
I am also feeling very weary and I don't think I can stay awake for the end of the match.
Daria Gavrilova, aka Dasher, won her match in three sets .. very happy with that outcome.
I can't stop yawning, so I'm off to bed to get a good night of sleep (it's 10pm).
Sorry, I have nothing to share to make this post more interesting. I may have pictures of pictures that Chicklet has been working on, tomorrow evening. Maybe.
Nite all.
I had a lovely evening catching up with the Bowls Club poker machines and my wonderful friends at the Bowls Club.
I am enjoying the end of the day watching Nick Kyrgios play in the Australian Open. He lost the first two sets but is playing like a champion now, having won the third set and I feel like he is in control in the fourth set.
I am also feeling very weary and I don't think I can stay awake for the end of the match.
Daria Gavrilova, aka Dasher, won her match in three sets .. very happy with that outcome.
I can't stop yawning, so I'm off to bed to get a good night of sleep (it's 10pm).
Sorry, I have nothing to share to make this post more interesting. I may have pictures of pictures that Chicklet has been working on, tomorrow evening. Maybe.
Nite all.
Thursday, January 21, 2016
Just a Bit
So I did 'just a bit' of housework today.
I cleaned out the fridge. I cleaned one toilet. I did three loads of washing. I cooked one meal.
I stopped when the tennis started on TV. Tennis will always win over housework. Come to think of it, just about everything will win over housework.
Vegan Chickie and Chicklet phoned me today and it was nice to catch up with their news. It seems that Chicklet's new favourite person is Aunty BGWLBH. Sideways swinging and funny words have become the foundation for a beautiful friendship! I think that's lovely :)
We farewelled Lleyton Hewitt from the tennis circuit tonight when he was soundly beaten in his second round match against David Ferrer. I will miss Lleyton. He was one of my favourites.
Another Aussie, John Millman, who has been playing professionally for ten years, but has been a very quiet achiever, won his match and for the first time is into the third round of a Grand Slam. He will probably have to play Bernard Tomic in the next round. Tomic has won his first two sets and is looking good to win his match.
BGWLBH arrived home safensound yesterday, only to find the house ransacked. She had been robbed. They even took her pillows and doona!
If that wasn't bad enough, today she had to say goodbye to her best friend, Indi, the dog. She was 16 years old, a beautiful gentle and loving companion to BGWLBH and she will be greatly missed.
So please focus for a moment on sending strength and positive energy down south in the direction of BGWLBH to help her get through this very challenging period of her life. The universe sure sends us some mean curve balls sometimes, but this past six months of hell seems just a bit excessive!
One day at a time.
I think I might be up for an early one tonight. It's almost 10pm and I'm feeling weary after last night's bed time of 1am.
Nite all.
I cleaned out the fridge. I cleaned one toilet. I did three loads of washing. I cooked one meal.
I stopped when the tennis started on TV. Tennis will always win over housework. Come to think of it, just about everything will win over housework.
Vegan Chickie and Chicklet phoned me today and it was nice to catch up with their news. It seems that Chicklet's new favourite person is Aunty BGWLBH. Sideways swinging and funny words have become the foundation for a beautiful friendship! I think that's lovely :)
We farewelled Lleyton Hewitt from the tennis circuit tonight when he was soundly beaten in his second round match against David Ferrer. I will miss Lleyton. He was one of my favourites.
Another Aussie, John Millman, who has been playing professionally for ten years, but has been a very quiet achiever, won his match and for the first time is into the third round of a Grand Slam. He will probably have to play Bernard Tomic in the next round. Tomic has won his first two sets and is looking good to win his match.
BGWLBH arrived home safensound yesterday, only to find the house ransacked. She had been robbed. They even took her pillows and doona!
If that wasn't bad enough, today she had to say goodbye to her best friend, Indi, the dog. She was 16 years old, a beautiful gentle and loving companion to BGWLBH and she will be greatly missed.
So please focus for a moment on sending strength and positive energy down south in the direction of BGWLBH to help her get through this very challenging period of her life. The universe sure sends us some mean curve balls sometimes, but this past six months of hell seems just a bit excessive!
One day at a time.
I think I might be up for an early one tonight. It's almost 10pm and I'm feeling weary after last night's bed time of 1am.
Nite all.
Wednesday, January 20, 2016
Find a Rhythm
My life needs rhythm.
I need a plan and a routine and I need to NIKE (just do it)!!
I'm talking about housework of course. One thing in my life with which I have always struggled, so if anybody out there has any hot tips for making housework easier, faster, enjoyable or less of a chore, please feel free to share!! The only idea that I can come up with is hiring a cleaner!
I was running late for morning tea with the ladies today because I received a call from Mrs Bucket, a phone call that was very 'newsy' and took some time .. however most phone calls with Mrs Bucket take a bit of time :) It was good to hear from her, even though she had some upsetting family news.
When I eventually got there, I really enjoyed morning tea with the girls. Five of us were in attendance and we did miss Lady Lynn and Mardi and Reality TV Queen and Maid Marian who texted me to ask if coffee was on, but she strangely didn't turn up.
It was almost 10.30am by the time we said our farewells and headed home. (this is why my housework never gets done!)
Adoring husband had SES duties all morning, but came home for an early lunch and I had the afternoon to myself, during which I did NO housework, but instead, watched a movie called 'Elsa and Fred' with Shirley Maclaine and Christopher Plummer in it. I enjoyed it very much, because I like both of those actors.
Then I watched some tennis before doing a lamb roast for dinner. I cooked some 'parson's noses' in the oven first and used the fat left over from that, to cook the potatoes, sweet potatoes and pumpkin. The meat was a plain butterflied lamb leg which I browned in the skillet and then baked at high heat for fifteen minutes. I made a gravy with the lamb fat which was left in the skillet, some tapioca flour and some home made chicken broth and served it all with steamed fresh green beans.
It was delicious and AH said the pumpkin was the best he'd ever tasted. It was beautifully caramelised in the chicken fat.
I'm now NOT doing more housework while I watch more tennis. The Aussies are all doing well (except Sam Stosur, who never seems to do well at the Aussie Open) so far, which makes it a bit more interesting.
Found this on Magnesium today, which I found interesting, particularly because BGWLBH and I had discussions about it while she was here.
I have a couple more pics from our time on the Sunny Coast ...
and these for a giggle ...
And it's good night from me.
Nite all.
I need a plan and a routine and I need to NIKE (just do it)!!
I'm talking about housework of course. One thing in my life with which I have always struggled, so if anybody out there has any hot tips for making housework easier, faster, enjoyable or less of a chore, please feel free to share!! The only idea that I can come up with is hiring a cleaner!
I was running late for morning tea with the ladies today because I received a call from Mrs Bucket, a phone call that was very 'newsy' and took some time .. however most phone calls with Mrs Bucket take a bit of time :) It was good to hear from her, even though she had some upsetting family news.
When I eventually got there, I really enjoyed morning tea with the girls. Five of us were in attendance and we did miss Lady Lynn and Mardi and Reality TV Queen and Maid Marian who texted me to ask if coffee was on, but she strangely didn't turn up.
It was almost 10.30am by the time we said our farewells and headed home. (this is why my housework never gets done!)
Adoring husband had SES duties all morning, but came home for an early lunch and I had the afternoon to myself, during which I did NO housework, but instead, watched a movie called 'Elsa and Fred' with Shirley Maclaine and Christopher Plummer in it. I enjoyed it very much, because I like both of those actors.
Then I watched some tennis before doing a lamb roast for dinner. I cooked some 'parson's noses' in the oven first and used the fat left over from that, to cook the potatoes, sweet potatoes and pumpkin. The meat was a plain butterflied lamb leg which I browned in the skillet and then baked at high heat for fifteen minutes. I made a gravy with the lamb fat which was left in the skillet, some tapioca flour and some home made chicken broth and served it all with steamed fresh green beans.
It was delicious and AH said the pumpkin was the best he'd ever tasted. It was beautifully caramelised in the chicken fat.
I'm now NOT doing more housework while I watch more tennis. The Aussies are all doing well (except Sam Stosur, who never seems to do well at the Aussie Open) so far, which makes it a bit more interesting.
Found this on Magnesium today, which I found interesting, particularly because BGWLBH and I had discussions about it while she was here.
I have a couple more pics from our time on the Sunny Coast ...
and these for a giggle ...
Nite all.
Tuesday, January 19, 2016
Back to Normal
Tears all round as BGWLBH left this morning. I was very surprised to see her car still parked in the driveway when I woke this morning, so I actually got to see her drive away and I wasn't expecting that. It's much easier without 'goodbyes'.
We've had contact during the day and she is travelling well.
So the first half of my day was very quiet with both Adoring Husband and BGWLBH out of the house.
I took the opportunity to take a breath, and I watched one of my new dvds, "Last Cab to Darwin". It was not as sad as I expected, although it was quite dark in places, but funny with typical Aussie humour in other parts. I thought all the characters were well played except for Jackie Weaver. I usually like her, but I didn't like her in this role.
Just as I pressed 'play' on the second dvd, AH phoned to say that he was on his way home, so I paused the movie, made his lunch (duck breast with salad) and we sat down together to watch "Aloha".
It stars Bradley Cooper, Rachel McAdams, Emma Stone and Bill Murray. The first half of the movie was a bit confusing trying to figure out what was going on, but it eventually all came together and I enjoyed the movie a lot, with a few tears at the end.
AH is at a meeting tonight, so I get to watch the tennis in peace. At the moment Bernard Tomic is playing Denis Istomin from Uzbek. He is leading 2 sets to 1. I'm looking forward to Lleyton Hewitt's match tonight against another Aussie, James Duckworth. I hope he does well in his final Australian Open appearance.
I have another photo to share from our holiday. I call it "HIGHER! HIGHER!" which, much to BGWLBH's dismay, is pretty much was Chicklet was yelling for the entire time that she was on the swing.
Time for me to settle into the tennis.
Nite all.
We've had contact during the day and she is travelling well.
So the first half of my day was very quiet with both Adoring Husband and BGWLBH out of the house.
I took the opportunity to take a breath, and I watched one of my new dvds, "Last Cab to Darwin". It was not as sad as I expected, although it was quite dark in places, but funny with typical Aussie humour in other parts. I thought all the characters were well played except for Jackie Weaver. I usually like her, but I didn't like her in this role.
Just as I pressed 'play' on the second dvd, AH phoned to say that he was on his way home, so I paused the movie, made his lunch (duck breast with salad) and we sat down together to watch "Aloha".
It stars Bradley Cooper, Rachel McAdams, Emma Stone and Bill Murray. The first half of the movie was a bit confusing trying to figure out what was going on, but it eventually all came together and I enjoyed the movie a lot, with a few tears at the end.
AH is at a meeting tonight, so I get to watch the tennis in peace. At the moment Bernard Tomic is playing Denis Istomin from Uzbek. He is leading 2 sets to 1. I'm looking forward to Lleyton Hewitt's match tonight against another Aussie, James Duckworth. I hope he does well in his final Australian Open appearance.
I have another photo to share from our holiday. I call it "HIGHER! HIGHER!" which, much to BGWLBH's dismay, is pretty much was Chicklet was yelling for the entire time that she was on the swing.
Time for me to settle into the tennis.
Nite all.
Final Holiday Day
Today was BGWLBH's last day here.
As you read this blog post, she is probably already on her way home.
So we spent the day together at the Boat Club in The Bay. It was a good day. The coffee was good, the poker machines were reasonably friendly .. and by that I mean that we spent four hours there for free and the atmosphere was happy (because most tourists have left town now).
It was a nice way to spend the last day of our holiday.
I have two photos to share from our road trip.
The first is of my Grandfather's name (Francis John Fordham) on the war memorial in Esk. It was revealed to me only last year, that his name was there. Apparently, in his teenage years, he worked on a farm in Esk and joined the Navy at the beginning of WWI. He survived the war and Esk claimed him as their own.
The second is of the river at Wiangaree. Very picturesque.
Well, it's midnight. I'm off to bed. Hopefully I will be awake when BGWLBH leaves tomorrow .. although we both hate goodbyes and I wouldn't be surprised if she left without saying goodbye. It's easier that way. Less painful for both of us. She will sneak out in the early hours.
Nite all.
As you read this blog post, she is probably already on her way home.
So we spent the day together at the Boat Club in The Bay. It was a good day. The coffee was good, the poker machines were reasonably friendly .. and by that I mean that we spent four hours there for free and the atmosphere was happy (because most tourists have left town now).
It was a nice way to spend the last day of our holiday.
I have two photos to share from our road trip.
The first is of my Grandfather's name (Francis John Fordham) on the war memorial in Esk. It was revealed to me only last year, that his name was there. Apparently, in his teenage years, he worked on a farm in Esk and joined the Navy at the beginning of WWI. He survived the war and Esk claimed him as their own.
The second is of the river at Wiangaree. Very picturesque.
Well, it's midnight. I'm off to bed. Hopefully I will be awake when BGWLBH leaves tomorrow .. although we both hate goodbyes and I wouldn't be surprised if she left without saying goodbye. It's easier that way. Less painful for both of us. She will sneak out in the early hours.
Nite all.
Monday, January 18, 2016
Sunday Movies
Watched the new Star Wars movie with Adoring Husband. He loved it!
We decided to watch a second movie, but it meant that we had almost four hours to kill. We filled some time by visiting Stocklands and I got my reading glasses repaired. Adoring Husband had lunch while BGWLBH went book shopping and I got some groceries for dinner.
It was such a beautiful day, we drove along the Esplanade to check out the water and then decided to take our first look inside the Beach House Hotel since it was rebuilt and opened 18 months ago.
It's impressive! There was live music and a nice size crowd inside. We played the pokies for about 30 minutes before heading back to the cinemas.
We watched The Fifth Wave because AH said he was keen to see it, and the previews looked ok.
Absolute rubbish. I generously give it a 2/10. Acting was atrocious. Storyline was pathetic. It had absolutely nothing going for it and I recommend that you avoid it and don't waste 112 minutes of your life .. you'll never get that time back!
So we didn't get home til about 7pm, which meant a late dinner.
I made my version of Nachos. Sweet potato chips, avocado mash, sour cream, chopped tomatoes, rocket, chopped spring onions, grated carrot, goat's cheese, pork and chicken meatballs (which were already prepared and I'd taken them out of the freezer before we went out) with a sweet spicy sauce (coconut aminos, chilli powder, balsamic vinegar and tomato paste) poured over the top.
It was delicious.
Another round of trivia that BGWLBH won.
And now, once again, it is rapidly approaching 1am.
I need to sleep!!
The days have been full!!
Nite all.
We decided to watch a second movie, but it meant that we had almost four hours to kill. We filled some time by visiting Stocklands and I got my reading glasses repaired. Adoring Husband had lunch while BGWLBH went book shopping and I got some groceries for dinner.
It was such a beautiful day, we drove along the Esplanade to check out the water and then decided to take our first look inside the Beach House Hotel since it was rebuilt and opened 18 months ago.
It's impressive! There was live music and a nice size crowd inside. We played the pokies for about 30 minutes before heading back to the cinemas.
We watched The Fifth Wave because AH said he was keen to see it, and the previews looked ok.
Absolute rubbish. I generously give it a 2/10. Acting was atrocious. Storyline was pathetic. It had absolutely nothing going for it and I recommend that you avoid it and don't waste 112 minutes of your life .. you'll never get that time back!
So we didn't get home til about 7pm, which meant a late dinner.
I made my version of Nachos. Sweet potato chips, avocado mash, sour cream, chopped tomatoes, rocket, chopped spring onions, grated carrot, goat's cheese, pork and chicken meatballs (which were already prepared and I'd taken them out of the freezer before we went out) with a sweet spicy sauce (coconut aminos, chilli powder, balsamic vinegar and tomato paste) poured over the top.
It was delicious.
Another round of trivia that BGWLBH won.
And now, once again, it is rapidly approaching 1am.
I need to sleep!!
The days have been full!!
Nite all.
Sunday, January 17, 2016
Oopsy!
Today was intended to be movie day.
All three of us climbed into the car at 8.30am and headed into The Bay for our movie date. Halfway there, I realised that I'd left my glasses at home. Ugh!
Too blind to watch a movie without them, so we had to change our plans .. either go home to get the glasses, or postpone the viewing until the next day .. the second option was the best one.
So BGWLBH and I got our nails done .. a full set of gel nails.
We followed up with a bit of retail therapy.
Across town to savour the best coffee in town and also to visit Nana's Pantry and the Go Natural store.
A stop at JB HiFi so that Adoring Husband could spend his christmas voucher and of course some more retail therapy for we girls.
We arrived home at about 2pm and cooked up a quick beef stroganoff for a late lunch. While AH cleaned the kitchen, BGWLBH and I wandered down to the beach, me on the trike and BGWLBH walking.
I parked the trike and we kicked off our shoes to walk barefoot over the sand and wade ankle deep in the water at low tide. Even though it was overcast, the weather was quite mild and comfortable. We got caught in a couple of small showers, but nothing too dramatic.
On the way home, we grabbed a couple of coffees 'to go'.
We relaxed for about an hour before I made a fresh salad for BGWLBH and gave AH some leftovers from lunch and we followed that with a marathon trivia game.
After about 4 hours, we declared it a tie.
BGWLBH and I had all our pieces of pie and spent over an hour attempting to land in the middle and answer our final question to win the game, but try as we might, we couldn't get that last question right!!
We conceded well after 11pm. AH still had two pieces of pie to get and wouldn't let us declare a two way tie .. it had to be a three way tie! Cheeky! We were too tired to argue, so agreed that he could claim a win with us.
By the time we got ourselves organised and tidied up the dining room table, finished cleaning up the kitchen, filled all our water bottles, took the dogs out for their pre-bedtime pee, filled the slow cooker with chicken broth ingredients and turned it on and then sat down to write this blog, it was well after midnight!!
It's now rapidly approaching 1am and we have to be up reasonably early to see the boys at the Seat of Knowledge in the morning, so I'd best get some sleep.
I began to edit some photos to post tonight, but realised that it's just too late!
Sorry about that.
Nite all.
All three of us climbed into the car at 8.30am and headed into The Bay for our movie date. Halfway there, I realised that I'd left my glasses at home. Ugh!
Too blind to watch a movie without them, so we had to change our plans .. either go home to get the glasses, or postpone the viewing until the next day .. the second option was the best one.
So BGWLBH and I got our nails done .. a full set of gel nails.
We followed up with a bit of retail therapy.
Across town to savour the best coffee in town and also to visit Nana's Pantry and the Go Natural store.
A stop at JB HiFi so that Adoring Husband could spend his christmas voucher and of course some more retail therapy for we girls.
We arrived home at about 2pm and cooked up a quick beef stroganoff for a late lunch. While AH cleaned the kitchen, BGWLBH and I wandered down to the beach, me on the trike and BGWLBH walking.
I parked the trike and we kicked off our shoes to walk barefoot over the sand and wade ankle deep in the water at low tide. Even though it was overcast, the weather was quite mild and comfortable. We got caught in a couple of small showers, but nothing too dramatic.
On the way home, we grabbed a couple of coffees 'to go'.
We relaxed for about an hour before I made a fresh salad for BGWLBH and gave AH some leftovers from lunch and we followed that with a marathon trivia game.
After about 4 hours, we declared it a tie.
BGWLBH and I had all our pieces of pie and spent over an hour attempting to land in the middle and answer our final question to win the game, but try as we might, we couldn't get that last question right!!
We conceded well after 11pm. AH still had two pieces of pie to get and wouldn't let us declare a two way tie .. it had to be a three way tie! Cheeky! We were too tired to argue, so agreed that he could claim a win with us.
By the time we got ourselves organised and tidied up the dining room table, finished cleaning up the kitchen, filled all our water bottles, took the dogs out for their pre-bedtime pee, filled the slow cooker with chicken broth ingredients and turned it on and then sat down to write this blog, it was well after midnight!!
It's now rapidly approaching 1am and we have to be up reasonably early to see the boys at the Seat of Knowledge in the morning, so I'd best get some sleep.
I began to edit some photos to post tonight, but realised that it's just too late!
Sorry about that.
Nite all.
Friday, January 15, 2016
We Made it!
We enjoyed a pleasant breakfast in Noosaville with Chicklet and Vegan Chickie before we began the drive home, but then, impulsively, we took a short detour by turning left, instead of right, making our way to Sunshine Plaza for a spot of shopping.
We didn't spend much money, but we spent a lot of time .. maybe 3 hours wandering around the plaza looking for something 'different', but we decided that Sunshine Plaza is like Miranda Fair or Westfield Geelong or Westfield North Lakes. Same shops, same clothes, same shoes, same bags etc etc etc.
Finally, just in time to cook dinner, we arrived home. It was a long day and we had stopped at Sexie Coffee at 5pm for a coffee, which was a mighty mistake for me because I was still awake at 2.45am unable to relax and sleep.
I did manage to wake up at 7.00am and got to pedal down to spend a brief amount of time with the boys at the Seat of Knowledge and then buy some groceries and coffees to bring home.
I had to spend the entire morning editing the remaining town Christmas party photos to send through ready for the January town newsletter.
Next on the agenda was to cook a late roast chicken and veg lunch, which was quite yummy.
I went to the Bowls Club alone tonight, so it was a matter of scratching leftovers and nibbles together for dinner.
I had a chance to briefly look at our holiday photos this afternoon, but no chance to edit them .. I hope that I get to post some next week for your viewing pleasure.
Right now, after only 4 hours sleep last night, I am feeling decidedly tired and need desperately to sleep.
We are taking Adoring Husband into town (or he is taking us) to watch the new Star Wars movie tomorrow. BGWLBH and I also want to have our nails done, so it will be an early start.
For now ...
Nite all.
We didn't spend much money, but we spent a lot of time .. maybe 3 hours wandering around the plaza looking for something 'different', but we decided that Sunshine Plaza is like Miranda Fair or Westfield Geelong or Westfield North Lakes. Same shops, same clothes, same shoes, same bags etc etc etc.
Finally, just in time to cook dinner, we arrived home. It was a long day and we had stopped at Sexie Coffee at 5pm for a coffee, which was a mighty mistake for me because I was still awake at 2.45am unable to relax and sleep.
I did manage to wake up at 7.00am and got to pedal down to spend a brief amount of time with the boys at the Seat of Knowledge and then buy some groceries and coffees to bring home.
I had to spend the entire morning editing the remaining town Christmas party photos to send through ready for the January town newsletter.
Next on the agenda was to cook a late roast chicken and veg lunch, which was quite yummy.
I went to the Bowls Club alone tonight, so it was a matter of scratching leftovers and nibbles together for dinner.
I had a chance to briefly look at our holiday photos this afternoon, but no chance to edit them .. I hope that I get to post some next week for your viewing pleasure.
Right now, after only 4 hours sleep last night, I am feeling decidedly tired and need desperately to sleep.
We are taking Adoring Husband into town (or he is taking us) to watch the new Star Wars movie tomorrow. BGWLBH and I also want to have our nails done, so it will be an early start.
For now ...
Nite all.
Wednesday, January 13, 2016
Hot and Sunny
We had fairly big plans for today, but the hot weather and an exhausted Chicklet reduced the plans somewhat.
Breakfast at a little cafe on the marina, overlooking the water was a nice start to the morning. Beautifully cooked bacon and eggs and delicious coffee with excellent service from the very friendly and efficient staff.
We walked up to the Tewantin shopping area and utilised the new, albeit disappointing, children's park. It has no cover for shade, all of the equipment for playing was too hot to use, there is no fence around it, which seems unsafe considering there is a road on one side and open water on the other.
The main problem being that the main slide is such a big construction that you can't see what your child is doing from one side to the other. As a parent, it's impossible to see where your child is at all times unless you follow closely behind and use the equipment with the child.
We left there and bought some new stickers for activity play and a mini cold bag to keep my coconut yoghurt cold.
Our plan was to go on a ferry ride on the river, but the weather was getting hotter and the walking had sapped the energy from some of us, so we convinced Chicklet that a better idea was to go home to the air conditioning and have fun with the stickers instead.
So we grabbed a couple of take away coffees and headed home.
There was sticker play, then some outside play with the new wind up bird toy, then some quiet time with Mama, then some Minion game play on the bed, then some play with Dadu when he came home for a break, then BGWLBH and I took Chicklet to the park across the road.
Another 'dud' park .. surely built for teenagers, because there was no way for a (not even) 5 yr old to climb onto the equipment and the only way for Chicklet to get to the top of the slide, was to walk up the slide itself (while we held her hands) and turn around to slide back down.
Not even we adults were able to get to the top of the equipment. The rope ladders had such big gaps between each rung that you needed to be a circus acrobat to reach them and there was no solid ladder or means to reach the top level. It was a very strange design.
Anyway, we had a bit of fun with Chicklet there and then returned home for a bath. Waited patiently for our take away Thai dinner to be delivered and then Chicklet headed off to bed early.
We had fun for a couple of hours playing trivia from various web sites and I actually beat BGWLBH for the first time in about 20 years!! Yay for me!!
Tomorrow, we are heading home. It's been fun catching up with the Chicklet family and Chicklet loves BGWLBH, so the visit has been a huge success.
Adoring Husband has been very patient and is looking forward to seeing us tomorrow.
It'll be fun going through all the photos from our trip and I should be able to post some of them in a few days.
Time for sleep now.
Nite all.
Breakfast at a little cafe on the marina, overlooking the water was a nice start to the morning. Beautifully cooked bacon and eggs and delicious coffee with excellent service from the very friendly and efficient staff.
We walked up to the Tewantin shopping area and utilised the new, albeit disappointing, children's park. It has no cover for shade, all of the equipment for playing was too hot to use, there is no fence around it, which seems unsafe considering there is a road on one side and open water on the other.
The main problem being that the main slide is such a big construction that you can't see what your child is doing from one side to the other. As a parent, it's impossible to see where your child is at all times unless you follow closely behind and use the equipment with the child.
We left there and bought some new stickers for activity play and a mini cold bag to keep my coconut yoghurt cold.
Our plan was to go on a ferry ride on the river, but the weather was getting hotter and the walking had sapped the energy from some of us, so we convinced Chicklet that a better idea was to go home to the air conditioning and have fun with the stickers instead.
So we grabbed a couple of take away coffees and headed home.
There was sticker play, then some outside play with the new wind up bird toy, then some quiet time with Mama, then some Minion game play on the bed, then some play with Dadu when he came home for a break, then BGWLBH and I took Chicklet to the park across the road.
Another 'dud' park .. surely built for teenagers, because there was no way for a (not even) 5 yr old to climb onto the equipment and the only way for Chicklet to get to the top of the slide, was to walk up the slide itself (while we held her hands) and turn around to slide back down.
Not even we adults were able to get to the top of the equipment. The rope ladders had such big gaps between each rung that you needed to be a circus acrobat to reach them and there was no solid ladder or means to reach the top level. It was a very strange design.
Anyway, we had a bit of fun with Chicklet there and then returned home for a bath. Waited patiently for our take away Thai dinner to be delivered and then Chicklet headed off to bed early.
We had fun for a couple of hours playing trivia from various web sites and I actually beat BGWLBH for the first time in about 20 years!! Yay for me!!
Tomorrow, we are heading home. It's been fun catching up with the Chicklet family and Chicklet loves BGWLBH, so the visit has been a huge success.
Adoring Husband has been very patient and is looking forward to seeing us tomorrow.
It'll be fun going through all the photos from our trip and I should be able to post some of them in a few days.
Time for sleep now.
Nite all.
Monday, January 11, 2016
Terrific Toowoomba
We loved our room so much, we decided to stay a second night.
We do like Toowoomba. Great shopping. Great food. Great golf club. Great people.
We shopped til we dropped today, spent some time relaxing in our room, played the pokies at the club before enjoying a delicious Thai Chicken and Veg meal in the bistro. The courtesy bus wasn't running, so BGWLBH left earlier than me and walked back to the motel. I got a lift with the security guy on an electric golf buggy through the golf course in the dark .. saw a tawny frogmouth in the headlights too!
Tomorow, we head towards the Sunny Coast to spend a couple of nights with the Chicklet family!
We were saddened to hear the news of David Bowie's passing today ...
We do like Toowoomba. Great shopping. Great food. Great golf club. Great people.
We shopped til we dropped today, spent some time relaxing in our room, played the pokies at the club before enjoying a delicious Thai Chicken and Veg meal in the bistro. The courtesy bus wasn't running, so BGWLBH left earlier than me and walked back to the motel. I got a lift with the security guy on an electric golf buggy through the golf course in the dark .. saw a tawny frogmouth in the headlights too!
Tomorow, we head towards the Sunny Coast to spend a couple of nights with the Chicklet family!
We were saddened to hear the news of David Bowie's passing today ...
RIP David Bowie.
Nite all.Bloody Ballina
Ridiculous prices for average rooms in bloody Ballina.
We've decided that we don't like Ballina and probably won't include it on our road trip lists in the future.
The only special thing about our accommodation, was the lovely Border Collie, Zac, that greeted me when I arrived ...
We decided to drive to Lismore for breakfast this morning and found a little gallery cafe in town that made delicious food and great coffee.
From there we found some more back roads, stopped in Wiangaree (between Kyogle and Woodenbong) just to take some pics of the river there .. they are on my camera, so you will have to wait for those.
What we noticed most about the properties all along the roads there, was that the lawns and gardens, especially on the acreage properties, were meticulously kept! Very impressive. It was all so lush and green and beautiful too.
We stopped at a little spot that we'd photographed on one of our previous road trips, where there was a running stream and lots of dragonflies. There was a man there this time and he recommended a place called Tooloom Falls and told us that between the falls and the water treatment plant, there were a LOT of platypus (platypi is the incorrect term), but we would need a canoe or kayak to get to them.
We were very excited about the prospect and decided to go in search of the falls and the platypus!
Surprisingly, we found it without too much difficulty and it's a beautiful spot, great for campers, if you like to do it rough. Very picturesque and a lovely swimming hole with good flowing falls. Alas, there were too many people there for platypus to show their faces, so we missed out the wildlife.
The road from there was very tricky. Very windy. Very narrow. Very beautiful. Very lush. Thick rainforest for a good section of it and I could hear so many birds as we drove along!! BGWLBH is a great driver and I felt completely safe - although it seemed the big 4WD vehicles didn't like to move over and we were close to the edge getting out of their way. Luckily, there were only a few to worry about.
It was a lovely drive and we ended up in Toowoomba.
We ate at the golf club, which is pretty special. Nice food. Music. We watched some couples dancing to the slow music for a while and checked out the view of the golf course from the massive glass windows at the rear of the building.
We checked in to a lovely motel and have a beautiful room with very comfortable beds and since it's heading towards 1am, I am going to sleep now!
Having a great time ... wish you were here!
Nite all.
We've decided that we don't like Ballina and probably won't include it on our road trip lists in the future.
The only special thing about our accommodation, was the lovely Border Collie, Zac, that greeted me when I arrived ...
We decided to drive to Lismore for breakfast this morning and found a little gallery cafe in town that made delicious food and great coffee.
From there we found some more back roads, stopped in Wiangaree (between Kyogle and Woodenbong) just to take some pics of the river there .. they are on my camera, so you will have to wait for those.
What we noticed most about the properties all along the roads there, was that the lawns and gardens, especially on the acreage properties, were meticulously kept! Very impressive. It was all so lush and green and beautiful too.
We stopped at a little spot that we'd photographed on one of our previous road trips, where there was a running stream and lots of dragonflies. There was a man there this time and he recommended a place called Tooloom Falls and told us that between the falls and the water treatment plant, there were a LOT of platypus (platypi is the incorrect term), but we would need a canoe or kayak to get to them.
We were very excited about the prospect and decided to go in search of the falls and the platypus!
Surprisingly, we found it without too much difficulty and it's a beautiful spot, great for campers, if you like to do it rough. Very picturesque and a lovely swimming hole with good flowing falls. Alas, there were too many people there for platypus to show their faces, so we missed out the wildlife.
The road from there was very tricky. Very windy. Very narrow. Very beautiful. Very lush. Thick rainforest for a good section of it and I could hear so many birds as we drove along!! BGWLBH is a great driver and I felt completely safe - although it seemed the big 4WD vehicles didn't like to move over and we were close to the edge getting out of their way. Luckily, there were only a few to worry about.
It was a lovely drive and we ended up in Toowoomba.
We ate at the golf club, which is pretty special. Nice food. Music. We watched some couples dancing to the slow music for a while and checked out the view of the golf course from the massive glass windows at the rear of the building.
We checked in to a lovely motel and have a beautiful room with very comfortable beds and since it's heading towards 1am, I am going to sleep now!
Having a great time ... wish you were here!
Nite all.
Saturday, January 9, 2016
Lovely Inverell
We stayed at the Cousins Motor Inn at Inverell last night. Another fabulous motel with heavenly beds and a small but decent bathroom.
We dined at the Inverell RSM club and we rate that as the best club dining experience so far. They had great GF options and BGWLBH had the prosciutto wrapped chicken breast with white wine sauce and I had the crumbed lamb cutlets with salad. Great prices too.
I always thought that Blackwater was the bogan capital of Australia, but I think Inverell is giving Blackwater a run for it's money!
As we left Inverell this morning, we saw masses of wildflowers in the fields. Yellow paper daisies, white Queen Ann Lace and some kind of pretty purple flower (not Patterson's Curse). We wanted to stop the car and pick a bouquet of it all, but there was nowhere to stop! We imagined ourselves as kangaroos with long flowing hair bounding over the fences and filling our pouches with the pretty flowers.
I told you yesterday that we were weird!
We stopped at Swanbrook picnic area for a toilet break and there was a lovely little stream lined with willow trees and Superb Fairy Wrens flitting about. I stood under the tree with my camera and the birds were hopping on the tree branches all around me. They were too close for my long lens to even focus on them!
I've never been so close to these beautiful little birds .. I could have reached out and touched them! If I'd had my way, I'd have sat under that Willow tree for a couple of hours and just soaked up the beauty of it all. Those photos are on my camera, so I can't share them here yet.
Hudson picked some wildflowers while we were there, especially for BGWLBH ...
On the outskirts of Glenn Innes, as we arrived there, we noticed some market stalls in a park, with a coffee van, so we stopped. I bought some goat's milk clothes washing 'stuff' and we bought two coffees. The van operator was from Wagga! His coffee was nice, but his coffee cup lids didn't fit, and we dribbled coffee over ourselves and eventually threw the coffee away. Annoying!
We stopped at the information centre in Glenn Innes to find out about fossicking for gems, but then BGWLBH noticed that they sold small bags of raw gems for $5 so I bought her one of those and we didn't have to spend the money or the time sifting through dirt!! Haha!!
After we left Glenn Innes and headed toward Grafton, we found a turn off that told us 16kms to Mann River, so we took the turn and drove along a dirt road for about 5kms and then the road turned into bitumen, but was very narrow and winding and steep down a mountain. The weather changed from 'fine' to 'fine misty rain', which made the drive even more precarious!
At about the 12km mark we were stopped by a causeway with water flowing over it and we decided that we would go no further, so we turned around, took a few pics, and headed back to the highway. We only passed one car on the way down, but unfortunately passed 5 cars on the way back .. very scary on such a narrow road up a mountain!
The area was green and lush and beautiful rainforest and we thoroughly enjoyed the drive, even if it was a little scary.
We found a lookout called 'Raspberry Lookout' and it was stunning, but as we arrived, a huge black thunder storm loomed behind us and the thunder rolled across the sky with dark clouds closing in quickly. We took some really quick pics and jumped back in the car attempting to beat the storm.
Part of the drive to Grafton ...
Such pretty countryside.
The storm seemed to be on our tail all the way to Grafton, but we beat it and have ended up in Ballina tonight.
Ballina RSL food is not as good as Inverell's and though it's a nice club, it's loud and busy and rates low on our list of favoured clubs.
We are staying in the Best Western Ballina Island Motor Inn tonight. The beds seem comfortable but I'm not sure the price is worth it. I will report tomorrow!
I'm feeling very sleepy now, so I'm off to bed.
Nite all.
We dined at the Inverell RSM club and we rate that as the best club dining experience so far. They had great GF options and BGWLBH had the prosciutto wrapped chicken breast with white wine sauce and I had the crumbed lamb cutlets with salad. Great prices too.
I always thought that Blackwater was the bogan capital of Australia, but I think Inverell is giving Blackwater a run for it's money!
As we left Inverell this morning, we saw masses of wildflowers in the fields. Yellow paper daisies, white Queen Ann Lace and some kind of pretty purple flower (not Patterson's Curse). We wanted to stop the car and pick a bouquet of it all, but there was nowhere to stop! We imagined ourselves as kangaroos with long flowing hair bounding over the fences and filling our pouches with the pretty flowers.
I told you yesterday that we were weird!
We stopped at Swanbrook picnic area for a toilet break and there was a lovely little stream lined with willow trees and Superb Fairy Wrens flitting about. I stood under the tree with my camera and the birds were hopping on the tree branches all around me. They were too close for my long lens to even focus on them!
I've never been so close to these beautiful little birds .. I could have reached out and touched them! If I'd had my way, I'd have sat under that Willow tree for a couple of hours and just soaked up the beauty of it all. Those photos are on my camera, so I can't share them here yet.
Hudson picked some wildflowers while we were there, especially for BGWLBH ...
On the outskirts of Glenn Innes, as we arrived there, we noticed some market stalls in a park, with a coffee van, so we stopped. I bought some goat's milk clothes washing 'stuff' and we bought two coffees. The van operator was from Wagga! His coffee was nice, but his coffee cup lids didn't fit, and we dribbled coffee over ourselves and eventually threw the coffee away. Annoying!
We stopped at the information centre in Glenn Innes to find out about fossicking for gems, but then BGWLBH noticed that they sold small bags of raw gems for $5 so I bought her one of those and we didn't have to spend the money or the time sifting through dirt!! Haha!!
After we left Glenn Innes and headed toward Grafton, we found a turn off that told us 16kms to Mann River, so we took the turn and drove along a dirt road for about 5kms and then the road turned into bitumen, but was very narrow and winding and steep down a mountain. The weather changed from 'fine' to 'fine misty rain', which made the drive even more precarious!
At about the 12km mark we were stopped by a causeway with water flowing over it and we decided that we would go no further, so we turned around, took a few pics, and headed back to the highway. We only passed one car on the way down, but unfortunately passed 5 cars on the way back .. very scary on such a narrow road up a mountain!
The area was green and lush and beautiful rainforest and we thoroughly enjoyed the drive, even if it was a little scary.
We found a lookout called 'Raspberry Lookout' and it was stunning, but as we arrived, a huge black thunder storm loomed behind us and the thunder rolled across the sky with dark clouds closing in quickly. We took some really quick pics and jumped back in the car attempting to beat the storm.
Part of the drive to Grafton ...
Such pretty countryside.
The storm seemed to be on our tail all the way to Grafton, but we beat it and have ended up in Ballina tonight.
Ballina RSL food is not as good as Inverell's and though it's a nice club, it's loud and busy and rates low on our list of favoured clubs.
We are staying in the Best Western Ballina Island Motor Inn tonight. The beds seem comfortable but I'm not sure the price is worth it. I will report tomorrow!
I'm feeling very sleepy now, so I'm off to bed.
Nite all.
Friday, January 8, 2016
Dodgy Dubbo
So, on Wednesday night, we stayed in the Comfort Inn Blue Lagoon in Dubbo, which is supposed to be a 4 star motel. Let's see if I can remember all the things that were wrong with it ...
Dear Roz Griffin
Thank you for your time given in advising our Receptionist Lee regarding your stay last night at The Comfort Inn Blue Lagoon.
Allow me to apologise on behalf of our motel for failing to meet your expectations regarding the following issues;
The bedhead, bedside table and crockery cupboard door need repairing and resecuring and our maintenance team have been advised.
The mould in shower has been removed and is now being monitored more closely.
The hairband found in your bed has been addressed with our laundry and housemaid team.
Your air conditioner had been set incorrectly. I am assuming by the last guest staying in your room therefore if we were notified immediately it could have been reset.
A family was checked in late last night into a room next door unfortunately they were noisy although I would have notified them to keep the noise down if I was aware.
After many attempts of trying to find which dog was barking after your first phone call. I spoke with the owner of the dog and asked him to quiet his animal.
30% of our beds on the property have been replaced by a Sleepmaker Serta Choice Elite II double sided Miracoil5 cushion top which is ranked as excellent under the Star Ratings quality guidelines. During the next 2 months we will have new beds throughout our property.
Again thank you for your time and valuable feedback. We sincerely appreciate it and hope you will give us another chance to accommodate you on your next visit to Dubbo.
Kind regards
Jodie Vella and Peter Webb
Proprietors
Comfort Inn Blue Lagoon
79-85 Cobra Street
Dubbo NSW 2830
- My single bed bed head detached itself from the wall during the night and collapsed onto the floor.
- A panel from the bedside table fell off.
- There was mould in the shower.
- There was a used hair band (with hair attached) under the sheet in the double bed.
- The air conditioner was set to turn on when the room became hot and stuffy and turn off when it became freezing like a refrigerator. It was also VERY loud.
- A family checked in next door at midnight and had kids who were LOUD until about 1am.
- There were kennels attached to the motel and the one guest who had a dog let it bark all night .. I phoned to complain twice and it was about 1am when the dog stopped barking.
- The double bed was old and saggy like a hammock (not in a good way).
- The carpet was so worn that it was lifted and a trip hazard at the front door. It was also frayed and threadbare at the walls.
- The cabinet that held the bar fridge and coffee making stuff had dodgy doors that would not close.
- There was a constant drip outside the bathroom window that we could hear all night.
Dear Roz Griffin
Thank you for your time given in advising our Receptionist Lee regarding your stay last night at The Comfort Inn Blue Lagoon.
Allow me to apologise on behalf of our motel for failing to meet your expectations regarding the following issues;
The bedhead, bedside table and crockery cupboard door need repairing and resecuring and our maintenance team have been advised.
The mould in shower has been removed and is now being monitored more closely.
The hairband found in your bed has been addressed with our laundry and housemaid team.
Your air conditioner had been set incorrectly. I am assuming by the last guest staying in your room therefore if we were notified immediately it could have been reset.
A family was checked in late last night into a room next door unfortunately they were noisy although I would have notified them to keep the noise down if I was aware.
After many attempts of trying to find which dog was barking after your first phone call. I spoke with the owner of the dog and asked him to quiet his animal.
30% of our beds on the property have been replaced by a Sleepmaker Serta Choice Elite II double sided Miracoil5 cushion top which is ranked as excellent under the Star Ratings quality guidelines. During the next 2 months we will have new beds throughout our property.
Again thank you for your time and valuable feedback. We sincerely appreciate it and hope you will give us another chance to accommodate you on your next visit to Dubbo.
Kind regards
Jodie Vella and Peter Webb
Proprietors
Comfort Inn Blue Lagoon
79-85 Cobra Street
Dubbo NSW 2830
I thanked them for the follow up and told them that I probably wouldn't stay there again, but I wished them good luck in providing a better service for their future customers.
We left there to visit the Warrumbungles. We've avoided the area for the last 3 road trips because of the severe bush fires that occurred in January 2013, but we figured that after 3 years, the regrowth would be complete and the area would look as good as it did the last time we visited.
Sadly, this was not the case. Although there is regrowth, it is barely halfway up the blackened dead stumps that were once lush trees and the damage can still be seen for hectare after hectare after hectare. It is so badly ravaged that BGWLBH and I could barely speak for an hour as we surveyed the area through our drive.
The information centre that we visited last time was obviously razed during the fire and there is just bare earth where it once stood. The signs were damaged and burnt and melted. We were left feeling sad and empty knowing that there is a little bit of history only in our memories now.
We chose not to go on any of the walks, but we did discover the park where we ate lunch last time and it was left untouched by the fire. Except for the very loud cicadas, it was a beautiful spot to eat our lunch.
Our original plan was to stay at Coonabarabran for the night, but we had to get out of there and ended up in Tamworth for the night instead.
We had a beautiful room at Ashby House. Beautiful beds. Lovely bathroom. Quiet area. I highly recommend that one!
This morning we enjoyed a delicious breakfast at Trinity's Coffee Lounge, although the coffee wasn't much good, and then we found a shoe warehouse and the retail therapy was enjoyable.
We discussed the option of staying in Tamworth a second night, but opted to head towards Inverell or Glenn Innes instead.
We found a back way that we've never travelled before and drove through Manilla, Barraba, Bingara and on to Inverell. We stopped for lunch at Australia Day Park in Barraba, which was lovely.
After we left here, we were driving along a dirt road and unexpectedly came across this ...
No idea where the other half was!
Tonight we are in the Cousins Motor Inn at Inverell. The bed feels very comfortable and I am about to sign off and get some sleep.
Just so you know .. we are having a fabulous time. The back roads are the best roads and we have discovered some real little gems while avoiding traffic and driving at a nice slow pace in order to enjoy the views.
We never decide, until we are sitting over breakfast, what direction we are going to drive for the day and it's the nicest way to do a road trip! Very relaxing and every day is a good day :)
Nite all.
Thursday, January 7, 2016
Just a quickie
Yesterday in Orange, we found some mates for Hudson-Barnaby ...
... and today at the Warrumbungles, we saw this interesting structure...
I have plenty to talk about from today's travels but it's late and I need some sleep, so I will try to catch you up tomorrow.
We are staying in Tamworth tonight .. one week out from their big country music festival, so it's fairly quiet in town at the moment. We had a nice 'all you can eat' buffet for dinner at one of the clubs for $23 each. Fresh seafood, roast meats and veg or chinese food plus desserts (even gluten free options!).
We are also in a lovely motel with intact furniture and nice beds, no dogs and a well regulated air conditioning system. I'll tell you more about that little incident tomorrow too! At least we got 10% off the cost of our room and I am awaiting an email from the owners of the motel in Dubbo.
Anyway, that's it for now.
Nite all.
... and today at the Warrumbungles, we saw this interesting structure...
I have plenty to talk about from today's travels but it's late and I need some sleep, so I will try to catch you up tomorrow.
We are staying in Tamworth tonight .. one week out from their big country music festival, so it's fairly quiet in town at the moment. We had a nice 'all you can eat' buffet for dinner at one of the clubs for $23 each. Fresh seafood, roast meats and veg or chinese food plus desserts (even gluten free options!).
We are also in a lovely motel with intact furniture and nice beds, no dogs and a well regulated air conditioning system. I'll tell you more about that little incident tomorrow too! At least we got 10% off the cost of our room and I am awaiting an email from the owners of the motel in Dubbo.
Anyway, that's it for now.
Nite all.
Wednesday, January 6, 2016
Skirting the Weather
We stayed in Cowra last night and we booked into the Cowra Services Club Motel. I highly recommend it. Beautiful rooms, perfect beds (I slept soundly all night) and nice big bathrooms with an excellent shower head and great water pressure .. we judge all our rooms by the comfort of the bed and water pressure in the shower head lol.
We stopped in town this morning and had a nice bacon and egg breakfast. The eggs tasted like they came straight from the chooks butt .. delicious .. and the coffee was divine!
The Cowra POW camp was interesting .. not something that I thought would capture my interest, but I enjoyed the hour or so that we spent there. The peppercorn trees attracted the little blue fairy wrens, so I got a few pics on my camera and can't wait to download them when I get home.
We didn't enter the Japanese gardens because they were charging $15 entry, but we did have a coffee in the cafe there, which was lovely.
Canowindra was our next stop, but we got a bit dazed and confused and almost couldn't find our way out!
We stopped at Cargo for lunch. There was a lovely little park and we sat at a picnic table under a willow tree for about an hour enjoying the soft breeze and the quiet of the area. We renamed it Cargo, Bargo Fargo for no particular reason, except that we are weird.
We've travelled most roads in this part of NSW, but we found a route to Wellington, via Molong and Euchareena that we've not travelled before and it was lovely and quiet and scenic. Euchareena is a beautiful little gem in the middle of nowhere, established in 1834 with pretty little cottages and very lush and pretty.
Stuart Town, not far from there, was also gorgeous.
Burrendong Dam was a nice stop too. We went to the lake last time we travelled this way and they wanted to charge us to go there, so we didn't bother, but the dam was free and quite beautiful to view, although it is very low at the moment. There were emus roaming the grounds and I could hear lots of fairy wrens in the area too.
The bad weather was all around us and we passed through a couple of very light showers, but we cleverly avoided the heavy weather and we could see the black clouds, could hear the thunder and in the distance there were very heavy showers .. but the weather parted to allow us to pass through unscathed.
The land was very dry as we travelled north of Orange, but Orange itself was green and lush and beautiful .. it's our new favourite inland town. Just glorious.
Tonight we are staying in Dubbo in a very dodgy motel. My bedhead has already collapsed, there is dodgy electrical wiring hanging behind both bedside tables, no power points near the beds. The motel has kennels and there is a dog barking that I have complained twice about! The carpet is pulling off the floor, the cupboard doors are loose and there is a leak behind the bathroom wall.
The beds are very saggy and we are questioning my decision to stay here. Ah well, we can't be successful with every choice!!
I have 2% charge left on my laptop and no power point to plug it in, so I'd best sign off here before the laptop shuts down!!
Nite all.
We stopped in town this morning and had a nice bacon and egg breakfast. The eggs tasted like they came straight from the chooks butt .. delicious .. and the coffee was divine!
The Cowra POW camp was interesting .. not something that I thought would capture my interest, but I enjoyed the hour or so that we spent there. The peppercorn trees attracted the little blue fairy wrens, so I got a few pics on my camera and can't wait to download them when I get home.
We didn't enter the Japanese gardens because they were charging $15 entry, but we did have a coffee in the cafe there, which was lovely.
Canowindra was our next stop, but we got a bit dazed and confused and almost couldn't find our way out!
We stopped at Cargo for lunch. There was a lovely little park and we sat at a picnic table under a willow tree for about an hour enjoying the soft breeze and the quiet of the area. We renamed it Cargo, Bargo Fargo for no particular reason, except that we are weird.
We've travelled most roads in this part of NSW, but we found a route to Wellington, via Molong and Euchareena that we've not travelled before and it was lovely and quiet and scenic. Euchareena is a beautiful little gem in the middle of nowhere, established in 1834 with pretty little cottages and very lush and pretty.
Stuart Town, not far from there, was also gorgeous.
Burrendong Dam was a nice stop too. We went to the lake last time we travelled this way and they wanted to charge us to go there, so we didn't bother, but the dam was free and quite beautiful to view, although it is very low at the moment. There were emus roaming the grounds and I could hear lots of fairy wrens in the area too.
The bad weather was all around us and we passed through a couple of very light showers, but we cleverly avoided the heavy weather and we could see the black clouds, could hear the thunder and in the distance there were very heavy showers .. but the weather parted to allow us to pass through unscathed.
The land was very dry as we travelled north of Orange, but Orange itself was green and lush and beautiful .. it's our new favourite inland town. Just glorious.
Tonight we are staying in Dubbo in a very dodgy motel. My bedhead has already collapsed, there is dodgy electrical wiring hanging behind both bedside tables, no power points near the beds. The motel has kennels and there is a dog barking that I have complained twice about! The carpet is pulling off the floor, the cupboard doors are loose and there is a leak behind the bathroom wall.
The beds are very saggy and we are questioning my decision to stay here. Ah well, we can't be successful with every choice!!
I have 2% charge left on my laptop and no power point to plug it in, so I'd best sign off here before the laptop shuts down!!
Nite all.
Tuesday, January 5, 2016
And We're Off!!
Richie Rich did my hair this morning and now it looks beautifully glossy and grey, mixed with my own natural colour. I will attempt to take a selfie tomorrow and post it .. the light in our room is not conducive to photography.
We left Griffith at about 10.30am and after we passed Binya, there was a sign pointing to our left with the name 'Euratha'. BGWLBH said "I've always wanted to go to Euratha. Shall we?"
43 kms is on the edge of our agreed limit when we are heading down beaten tracks, so I agreed that we should do it!
Almost immediately, we were on a dirt/gravel road. It was well maintained and quite wide. There was no other traffic, in fact, during the entire 43 kms we only saw two cars.
At one stage, we were joined by a mob of kangaroos and they hopped beside, or in front of us for a few kms. They bounded high over fallen tree trunks, barbed wire fences and low shrubs until eventually, they took a sharp left turn and bounded across the golden paddock beside the road.
The soil was a deep rich red, and because of recent good rains, the trees and shrubs were a vibrant healthy green colour and the paddocks were filled with whatever grows creamy and golden in colour. A truly Aussie scene for as far as the eye could see, with the deep blue coloured mountains on the horizon.
For a good section of the road (maybe 10kms), one lane was blocked off for roadworks, even though there was nobody actually working on the road. The closed lane was piled high with blue/grey cut rock.
We stopped along the road when I spotted a Wedge Tail Eagle soaring above us. I climbed out of the car and took a couple of quick shots so that I could zoom in and verify that it was a wedgie, but then I spotted a dam with a large flock of sheep standing along it's tallest bank. There was a mixture of black, white and mottled sheep and even though the dam water was low, the light was reflecting nicely off it, so I took a couple of shots from varying angles.
Then I heard a commotion in the tree beside me and it was full of Apostle Birds, so I attempted to get a clear shot of one of those .. I have never photographed one before, so I was keen to get just one good shot .. it didn't happen.
I gave up and walked back to the car. Just as BGWLBH was about to ask what happened to the wedgie, I remembered that I was supposed to be photographing the wedgie!! I burst out laughing when I realised that, once again, I was distracted from my initial goal and I looked up to search the sky for my beautiful wedgie, but it was nowhere to be seen.
On we drove until we reached the end of the road.
But .. but .. but???? Where the hell is Euratha????
There was no Euratha. The first sign said Euratha and we were driving along Euratha Road, but there was no Euratha. Pfffft.
Next stop Weethalle, where there is a cafe called 'Road Kill Grills'. We stopped to take a photo, but it was too early to stop for lunch, so no road kill for us today.
We stopped at West Wyalong and searched out a supermarket where we stocked up on salads and fruit, cheeses for BGWLBH, turkey breast and smoked salmon and then discovered a little picnic area on the outskirts of town, so we stopped to feast on our selected fare. We experienced gale force conditions and we shared some of our scraps with the crows and apostle birds before we packed up and continued on our travels.
When we came to Grenfell, we decided we needed coffee, so we stopped in the main street and before I got out of the car, I noticed a SHOE SHOP down the way, so I immediately made a beeline for it while BGWLBH picked up a couple of items from the supermarket that we had forgotten earlier.
I found a great pair of shoes - the only ones in the whole shop that I liked! The manager told us that the only two coffee shops in town had closed for January. WHAT THE????!!! She suggested the Caltex Service Station, so we back tracked, filled the tank with fuel and ordered two coffees.
Great service. Crap coffee. Blah.
We followed the signs to Henry Lawson's birthplace, which turned out to be a tree with a plaque beneath it...
Tonight we are in a lovely little motel in Cowra. The Cowra Servicemans Club bistro for dinner. I had grilled chicken and salad while BGWLBH had grilled Barramundi with chips and salad. We each had a wine to celebrate the end of our first day.
I have taken photos with my camera today, but can't share them until the end of the trip when I will be able to edit them properly on my iMac, so all the photos that I share here for the next week or so, will be from my phone. I'm still learning how to use it and to edit them in Instagram and then share them elsewhere, so bear with me!
It's been a great first day and considering how wide spread the rains are over the eastern states, we only drove through a couple of light showers today. We have some exploring to do tomorrow. Waterfalls, bush tracks and hills ... hopefully a wedgie or two! Let's hope we are equally lucky tomorrow with the weather.
It's after 11pm so it's sleep time for me now.
Nite all
We left Griffith at about 10.30am and after we passed Binya, there was a sign pointing to our left with the name 'Euratha'. BGWLBH said "I've always wanted to go to Euratha. Shall we?"
43 kms is on the edge of our agreed limit when we are heading down beaten tracks, so I agreed that we should do it!
Almost immediately, we were on a dirt/gravel road. It was well maintained and quite wide. There was no other traffic, in fact, during the entire 43 kms we only saw two cars.
At one stage, we were joined by a mob of kangaroos and they hopped beside, or in front of us for a few kms. They bounded high over fallen tree trunks, barbed wire fences and low shrubs until eventually, they took a sharp left turn and bounded across the golden paddock beside the road.
The soil was a deep rich red, and because of recent good rains, the trees and shrubs were a vibrant healthy green colour and the paddocks were filled with whatever grows creamy and golden in colour. A truly Aussie scene for as far as the eye could see, with the deep blue coloured mountains on the horizon.
For a good section of the road (maybe 10kms), one lane was blocked off for roadworks, even though there was nobody actually working on the road. The closed lane was piled high with blue/grey cut rock.
We stopped along the road when I spotted a Wedge Tail Eagle soaring above us. I climbed out of the car and took a couple of quick shots so that I could zoom in and verify that it was a wedgie, but then I spotted a dam with a large flock of sheep standing along it's tallest bank. There was a mixture of black, white and mottled sheep and even though the dam water was low, the light was reflecting nicely off it, so I took a couple of shots from varying angles.
Then I heard a commotion in the tree beside me and it was full of Apostle Birds, so I attempted to get a clear shot of one of those .. I have never photographed one before, so I was keen to get just one good shot .. it didn't happen.
I gave up and walked back to the car. Just as BGWLBH was about to ask what happened to the wedgie, I remembered that I was supposed to be photographing the wedgie!! I burst out laughing when I realised that, once again, I was distracted from my initial goal and I looked up to search the sky for my beautiful wedgie, but it was nowhere to be seen.
On we drove until we reached the end of the road.
But .. but .. but???? Where the hell is Euratha????
There was no Euratha. The first sign said Euratha and we were driving along Euratha Road, but there was no Euratha. Pfffft.
Next stop Weethalle, where there is a cafe called 'Road Kill Grills'. We stopped to take a photo, but it was too early to stop for lunch, so no road kill for us today.
We stopped at West Wyalong and searched out a supermarket where we stocked up on salads and fruit, cheeses for BGWLBH, turkey breast and smoked salmon and then discovered a little picnic area on the outskirts of town, so we stopped to feast on our selected fare. We experienced gale force conditions and we shared some of our scraps with the crows and apostle birds before we packed up and continued on our travels.
When we came to Grenfell, we decided we needed coffee, so we stopped in the main street and before I got out of the car, I noticed a SHOE SHOP down the way, so I immediately made a beeline for it while BGWLBH picked up a couple of items from the supermarket that we had forgotten earlier.
I found a great pair of shoes - the only ones in the whole shop that I liked! The manager told us that the only two coffee shops in town had closed for January. WHAT THE????!!! She suggested the Caltex Service Station, so we back tracked, filled the tank with fuel and ordered two coffees.
Great service. Crap coffee. Blah.
We followed the signs to Henry Lawson's birthplace, which turned out to be a tree with a plaque beneath it...
Tonight we are in a lovely little motel in Cowra. The Cowra Servicemans Club bistro for dinner. I had grilled chicken and salad while BGWLBH had grilled Barramundi with chips and salad. We each had a wine to celebrate the end of our first day.
I have taken photos with my camera today, but can't share them until the end of the trip when I will be able to edit them properly on my iMac, so all the photos that I share here for the next week or so, will be from my phone. I'm still learning how to use it and to edit them in Instagram and then share them elsewhere, so bear with me!
It's been a great first day and considering how wide spread the rains are over the eastern states, we only drove through a couple of light showers today. We have some exploring to do tomorrow. Waterfalls, bush tracks and hills ... hopefully a wedgie or two! Let's hope we are equally lucky tomorrow with the weather.
It's after 11pm so it's sleep time for me now.
Nite all
Monday, January 4, 2016
On Your Marks!
Tomorrow is the big day!
Coffee.
Hairdresser.
Road Trip!
Meet 'Hudson', our road trip travelling companion!
We didn't do much today. Tidied the house a bit so that the real estate could inspect it. Oh, a bit of retail therapy and bought some new bling!
I brought one pair of flat day time shoes with me and yesterday they broke! So annoying! Today, we went searching for some shoes to replace them, but found nothing appropriate. So, at the moment, all I have is a pair of rubber thongs (nice Havaianas, but I don't like wearing thongs out and about, unless I'm at home), so that will be my first priority as we travel through small towns .. in search of shoe shops!
Mum W had a doctor's appointment today, so I cooked dinner while they were gone. Fish mornay for Mum W and Lemon/Honey chicken for BGWLBH and I.
No photos were taken.
After last night, when we were ready for bed at 8.30pm .. there was a documentary on SBS about Walt Disney. So interesting! We sat up til about 11pm watching that, and neither of us went to sleep until well after midnight.
It's now almost 10pm and I think I'm ready to sleep. Best give Adoring Husband a good night phone call and then catch some zzzzzzs.
Nite all.
Coffee.
Hairdresser.
Road Trip!
Meet 'Hudson', our road trip travelling companion!
We didn't do much today. Tidied the house a bit so that the real estate could inspect it. Oh, a bit of retail therapy and bought some new bling!
I brought one pair of flat day time shoes with me and yesterday they broke! So annoying! Today, we went searching for some shoes to replace them, but found nothing appropriate. So, at the moment, all I have is a pair of rubber thongs (nice Havaianas, but I don't like wearing thongs out and about, unless I'm at home), so that will be my first priority as we travel through small towns .. in search of shoe shops!
Mum W had a doctor's appointment today, so I cooked dinner while they were gone. Fish mornay for Mum W and Lemon/Honey chicken for BGWLBH and I.
No photos were taken.
After last night, when we were ready for bed at 8.30pm .. there was a documentary on SBS about Walt Disney. So interesting! We sat up til about 11pm watching that, and neither of us went to sleep until well after midnight.
It's now almost 10pm and I think I'm ready to sleep. Best give Adoring Husband a good night phone call and then catch some zzzzzzs.
Nite all.
Sunday, January 3, 2016
Soundly Sleeping
Slept like a dead person last night, for about 6 solid hours. This bed is very comfortable!
BGWLBH cooked some bacon and eggs for breakfast this morning, which was the perfect way to start the day and then while she worked hard outside weeding the garden, I went walkabout with my camera looking for the abundant birdlife that I could clearly hear around the property.
Alas, I could find nothing but doves and sparrows. I could hear Silver Eyes, Fairy Wrens, Finches and Parrots as well as other birds that I could not identify ... but my eyes failed me ... so I have nothing to share in the way of outdoor photos today. Sad but true.
Here are a few that I took 'inside' with my phone camera and edited in Instagram ...
After she built up a good sweat in the garden, we decided to visit the cemetery and take some flowers to brighten up Dad W's site. BGWLBH chose a selection of vibrant red flowers, while I (of course) selected some long stemmed bright yellow flowers from the wall of artificial and silk flowers in the store.
Being so close to Christmas, all of the grave sites were awash with colour. Flowers, christmas decorations, religious ornaments and other symbols of love.
I ran into an old friend from my days at TAFE. KG was 16 years old (I was 30) when we attended the same TAFE course in 1990. She had fabulously long fingernails and dreamt of a career that would take her away from Griffith. Even though she had a short stint on the Gold Coast a couple of years ago, she is now 42 years of age and being married with children from an early age, her dreams never came to fruition. She was, and still is, a lovely down to earth girl.
This afternoon, we drove out to Mum W's house and cooked up a storm. Lamb shanks with a thick, chunky vegetable gravy, potato bake and zucchini slice. It was all delicious, although the lamb wasn't as tender as I'd like. Mum W ate a sizeable portion, only leaving the z slice on the plate.
Now we are home very early, BGWLBH is trying to select a dvd to watch and is complaining loudly that she has seen them all a thousand times.
The house is quiet and I feel that I could easily fall asleep at this early hour of the night .. barely 8.30pm!! Seems I'm not alone .. BGWLBH has bade me goodnight and is going to sleep! I think I will follow her lead .. we may both be awake at 3am looking for a dvd to watch!
Nite all.
BGWLBH cooked some bacon and eggs for breakfast this morning, which was the perfect way to start the day and then while she worked hard outside weeding the garden, I went walkabout with my camera looking for the abundant birdlife that I could clearly hear around the property.
Alas, I could find nothing but doves and sparrows. I could hear Silver Eyes, Fairy Wrens, Finches and Parrots as well as other birds that I could not identify ... but my eyes failed me ... so I have nothing to share in the way of outdoor photos today. Sad but true.
Here are a few that I took 'inside' with my phone camera and edited in Instagram ...
After she built up a good sweat in the garden, we decided to visit the cemetery and take some flowers to brighten up Dad W's site. BGWLBH chose a selection of vibrant red flowers, while I (of course) selected some long stemmed bright yellow flowers from the wall of artificial and silk flowers in the store.
Being so close to Christmas, all of the grave sites were awash with colour. Flowers, christmas decorations, religious ornaments and other symbols of love.
I ran into an old friend from my days at TAFE. KG was 16 years old (I was 30) when we attended the same TAFE course in 1990. She had fabulously long fingernails and dreamt of a career that would take her away from Griffith. Even though she had a short stint on the Gold Coast a couple of years ago, she is now 42 years of age and being married with children from an early age, her dreams never came to fruition. She was, and still is, a lovely down to earth girl.
This afternoon, we drove out to Mum W's house and cooked up a storm. Lamb shanks with a thick, chunky vegetable gravy, potato bake and zucchini slice. It was all delicious, although the lamb wasn't as tender as I'd like. Mum W ate a sizeable portion, only leaving the z slice on the plate.
Now we are home very early, BGWLBH is trying to select a dvd to watch and is complaining loudly that she has seen them all a thousand times.
The house is quiet and I feel that I could easily fall asleep at this early hour of the night .. barely 8.30pm!! Seems I'm not alone .. BGWLBH has bade me goodnight and is going to sleep! I think I will follow her lead .. we may both be awake at 3am looking for a dvd to watch!
Nite all.
Saturday, January 2, 2016
I'm Here!!
Sydney airport was loud, busy, congested and chaotic this morning. I've never seen so many people!! The queues for Virgin Blue check-in were out the door and down the footpath. There were hundreds of people packed like sardines inside the terminal and at least another hundred queued outside. Unbelievable!
Luckily for me, there was no queue in the Rex check-in section!
I didn't have to wait long in the screening line either, so I was able to find my way to coffee and breakfast quickly, with time to spare for some window shopping before I had to board my flight. Ok, ya got me .. I didn't window shop. I DID buy something.
Three people were late for my flight and we had to wait in the bus for an extra 20 minutes until they arrived before we were driven across the tarmac to our little Rex plane. One passenger jumped off the bus and ran behind it to throw up! They wouldn't let the rest of us off the bus until she had finished and they could hose the ground.
Our pilot looked like a young Val Kilmer .. he even wore the same style sunglasses as Val Kilmer when he played Iceman in Top Gun!
Our attendant was a bit cranky. She was obviously trying very hard to be happy and friendly, but I could see in her eyes that she wasn't having a good day. She spoke sternly to one lady passenger who sat in the wrong seat and then raised her voice at a passenger who was talking on his mobile phone when she had to ask him twice to hang up and turn it off.
The flight was very bumpy as we hit quite a bit of turbulence. There was a lot heavy cloud all the way and sometimes it felt like we were driving over a corrugated road. Not very pleasant.
Obviously, we landed safely and BGWLBH was waiting to greet me. It was hot. Oppressively hot.
We went straight to my hairdresser and made an appointment for Tuesday morning. We will be starting our road trip as soon as I walk out the door from that appointment. My hairdresser, Richie Rich, was not a happy chappy and I found out later that he had been offended by a lady and insulted three times. He said it got right under his skin and we could tell by his very low energy and unhappy vibe. He is usually so happy and vibrant and flamboyant.
We visited Mum W and I cooked her some fish and veg for dinner before we headed to the Chinese Restaurant for some bad food for dinner .. we both suffered for the experience and I certainly won't be eating there again! It wasn't 'bad' as in 'off', but 'bad' as in 'full of stuff that I don't usually eat' and my whole body felt 'ugh'.
We had enough time to eat our dinner and then walk to the cinema where we watched the new Star Wars movie. I enjoyed it very much and am looking forward to watching it with Adoring Husband when I return home .. if he forgives me for seeing it first without him!
Unfortunately, when the movie finished, we walked outside to steady pouring rain! BGWLBH lives about 500 metres from the cinema. It was pitch black and we didn't take umbrellas. The rain was cold! It had obviously been raining for some time because there were some deep puddles to trudge through and no footpath, so we alternated between walking on wet grass or dirt and the road.
If I'm honest, it was quite refreshing and not unpleasant at all. As BGWLBH said "When is the last time you got to walk in the rain like this?"
I got straight into a hot shower and washed and blow dried my hair.
Next on the agenda was opening my Christmas gifts from BGWLBH. Knowing that my favourite colour is yellow, her gifts followed that theme and apart from some very beautiful shiny sparkly jewellery, I also received some lovely yellow home wares and a fabulous hand made knitted yellow cushion. I feel very lucky and very spoiled!
I am now snuggled into a gorgeous brass double bed for the night.
I'm not sure what tomorrow will bring, but right now, I'm feeling pretty relaxed and comfy.
Nite all.
Luckily for me, there was no queue in the Rex check-in section!
I didn't have to wait long in the screening line either, so I was able to find my way to coffee and breakfast quickly, with time to spare for some window shopping before I had to board my flight. Ok, ya got me .. I didn't window shop. I DID buy something.
Three people were late for my flight and we had to wait in the bus for an extra 20 minutes until they arrived before we were driven across the tarmac to our little Rex plane. One passenger jumped off the bus and ran behind it to throw up! They wouldn't let the rest of us off the bus until she had finished and they could hose the ground.
Our pilot looked like a young Val Kilmer .. he even wore the same style sunglasses as Val Kilmer when he played Iceman in Top Gun!
Our attendant was a bit cranky. She was obviously trying very hard to be happy and friendly, but I could see in her eyes that she wasn't having a good day. She spoke sternly to one lady passenger who sat in the wrong seat and then raised her voice at a passenger who was talking on his mobile phone when she had to ask him twice to hang up and turn it off.
The flight was very bumpy as we hit quite a bit of turbulence. There was a lot heavy cloud all the way and sometimes it felt like we were driving over a corrugated road. Not very pleasant.
Obviously, we landed safely and BGWLBH was waiting to greet me. It was hot. Oppressively hot.
We went straight to my hairdresser and made an appointment for Tuesday morning. We will be starting our road trip as soon as I walk out the door from that appointment. My hairdresser, Richie Rich, was not a happy chappy and I found out later that he had been offended by a lady and insulted three times. He said it got right under his skin and we could tell by his very low energy and unhappy vibe. He is usually so happy and vibrant and flamboyant.
We visited Mum W and I cooked her some fish and veg for dinner before we headed to the Chinese Restaurant for some bad food for dinner .. we both suffered for the experience and I certainly won't be eating there again! It wasn't 'bad' as in 'off', but 'bad' as in 'full of stuff that I don't usually eat' and my whole body felt 'ugh'.
We had enough time to eat our dinner and then walk to the cinema where we watched the new Star Wars movie. I enjoyed it very much and am looking forward to watching it with Adoring Husband when I return home .. if he forgives me for seeing it first without him!
Unfortunately, when the movie finished, we walked outside to steady pouring rain! BGWLBH lives about 500 metres from the cinema. It was pitch black and we didn't take umbrellas. The rain was cold! It had obviously been raining for some time because there were some deep puddles to trudge through and no footpath, so we alternated between walking on wet grass or dirt and the road.
If I'm honest, it was quite refreshing and not unpleasant at all. As BGWLBH said "When is the last time you got to walk in the rain like this?"
I got straight into a hot shower and washed and blow dried my hair.
Next on the agenda was opening my Christmas gifts from BGWLBH. Knowing that my favourite colour is yellow, her gifts followed that theme and apart from some very beautiful shiny sparkly jewellery, I also received some lovely yellow home wares and a fabulous hand made knitted yellow cushion. I feel very lucky and very spoiled!
I am now snuggled into a gorgeous brass double bed for the night.
I'm not sure what tomorrow will bring, but right now, I'm feeling pretty relaxed and comfy.
Nite all.
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