In The Dark

We had just finished dinner last night (Thursday) around 6pm, when the blackout hit.

We were not prepared.

Luckily my phone was right beside me so I turned on the torch and found another torch and some candles as well as a box of matches.

We filled the dining table with lit candles and started playing trivia from a big book. That killed 90 minutes and still no sign of power.

I decided to go to bed. The football was on and I was able to watch the end of it online.

The power returned, for about 5-8 minutes, at 9.30pm, then without warning, blacked out again.

At 11.30pm the power returned and the house started buzzing and whirring as everything came back on and reset. The TV came on, the printer hummed, the aircon clicked into action, umpteen lights turned on lighting up the house like a Christmas tree.

So I had to get of bed to turn off the things that shouldn’t have been on.

Then, of course, I couldn’t get to sleep!

It was around 1am the last time I looked at the clock.

I managed to drag myself out of bed a bit after 8am and because Best Cousin in the World was coming for lunch, I had to get started on food prep. I had planned on prepping the salads the night before but the blackout put an end to that!

So I quickly played with Harley and then made coleslaw, potato salad, roast pumpkin, spinach and pine nut salad and cooked some lemon and garlic chicken wings.

Most importantly, I gave the toilet a quick clean haha.

BCITW arrived just after 11.30am and stayed for 4 hours. It was a great visit and while she was here we made up an essential oil concoction for Harley’s hotspot…

Harley was very happy to see her again jumping about and running around in circles.

It’s now after 11pm and I need to sleep.

Nite all.

Shopping Day

Investigate Excess Deaths

A day in The Bay grocery shopping, but also Office Works, newsagent, bakery, butcher, Telstra shop, jewellery kiosk, Strandbags, Petbarn and more.

Online, I purchased 3 items which arrived today and these 3/4 leggings are my favourites …

I haven’t received my sleepless night purchases yet.

I made a big order of GlutenFree4You goodies last week, including GF dim sims, but today they cancelled the order because they couldn’t find a third party courier service to deliver them this far from their base of Sunshine Coast. I am not happy about this turn of events.

BUT

When I travel down to Sunny Coast for my birthday trip, I will visit them and pick the dim sims up personally!

Home made hamburgers for dinner tonight.

Tomorrow night will be lamb rack with spinach, roasted pumpkin and pine nuts.

Now it’s time to sleep.

Nite all.

Virtue Scoping

What started out as a failed appointment to inspect a permanent caravan site for The Gypsy ended with a successful card reading to provide my virtue scope for the coming year.

These are the cards I selected randomly from the deck spread face down on the table …

This is my virtue scope …

… and the reverse …

Tonight we discovered that poor Harley has a hot spot on his back …

Apparently his grandmother has this problem and it can be treated with a recipe mix of essential oils …

Poor Harley.

My choice of protein for the evening didn’t thaw in time for dinner so I did GF pies with vegetables for dinner.

Now I sleep.

Nite all.

Happy April Fools

There were no pinches, punches, tricking or fooling in this house today.

What I’m looking forward to is changing the calendar from this freaky looking dog that looks like he belongs to Chuckie!

To this lovely looking soul!

I watched a couple of movies today before the football.

I was the only person to tip the Tigers in my footy tipping and I’m very excited to report that they won by ONE point! Wahoo!

I made Huli Huli Chicken (Hawaiian Tropical Chicken) with baked potato cake for dinner.

Now it’s time to sleep.

Nite all.

Caffeinated

That’s how I felt until 4am.

There was not a tired or relaxed bone in my body and I was zinging wide awake.

I did NOT drink tea or coffee or any drink/food with caffeine in it after 10am Saturday.

In fact I climbed into bed at 8pm feeling like I might not see out the second half of football because I was yawning and feeling very tired.

Well, I DID see out the football, followed by the movie “Robin Hood Prince of Thieves”, followed by Graham Norton, followed by TVSN shopping and now I’m expecting two nice tops to arrive in the mail in the next couple of weeks!

I attempted twice to turn off the TV and lie in the darkness practicing my slow steady breathing, which usually works instantly.

Not last night.

The last time I looked at the time it was 3.38am and I know I didn’t fall asleep straight away after that.

I woke briefly at 7am and I fell back to sleep until 9am. Not enough sleep so my energy levels were quite low all day.

I found enough energy this afternoon/evening to bake a red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting and I decorated it with fresh strawberries.

For dinner, I did a rolled lamb roast with baked vegetables - potato, pumpkin, carrot, onion, capsicum, cherry tomatoes and garlic with steamed beans and sugar snap peas. Home made gravy.

It was all very delicious and we all filled our bellies to the brim!

With such low energy, I watched a couple of movies and two footy matches during the day, so I feel much better and I think I’ll sleep well tonight.

So, as I watch the end of MAFS tonight, I’m ready for sleep.

Nite all.

Mostly Sunny Saturday

I found this on Facebook …

So, a young man comes up to me the other day and asks, "Hey, what's it feel like to be old?" I nearly spat out my prune juice from surprise because, frankly, I don't think of myself as old. The kid looked mortified when he saw my reaction, but I assured him it was an intriguing question. After pondering it, I came to the brilliant conclusion that getting old is a total gift.

Sure, sometimes I catch a glimpse of the old girl staring back at me in the mirror, but hey, I don't lose sleep over it. I'm not about to swap all the wisdom I've gathered for a few less silver hairs and a washboard stomach. I'm entitled to a bit of messiness, some extravagance, and a few hours admiring my garden without feeling guilty.

I've seen friends leave this world before they could enjoy the freedom that comes with aging. So what if I choose to stay up till 4 a.m. reading or gaming, and then snooze until who-knows-when? I'll groove to the tunes of the '50s and '60s, and if I fancy shedding a tear for a lost love later on, you bet I will!

I'll strut along the beach in a swimsuit hugging my old bod and dive into the waves without a care, despite the pitying glances from the bikini brigade. They'll get their turn at growing old if they're lucky.

Sure, my heart's endured its share of pain – losing loved ones, feeling a child's agony, or bidding farewell to a furry friend. But it's those trials that toughen us up and help us grow. A heart that's never been bruised is about as lively as a rock and will never savor the joy of imperfection.

I take pride in every silver strand on my head and in retaining the grin of my youth before those deep wrinkles showed up. So, to give an honest answer to the question: "I love being old because it makes me sharper and more liberated!"

Hey, I know I won't be around forever, but while I'm here, I'm living by my own rules – the ones my heart cooks up. No regrets for what never happened, no fretting over what's to come. For the time ahead, I'm just going to revel in life like I always have. The rest? Well, that's in the hands of the big guy upstairs.

 ©️ Suzy B

I can relate 😏

Easter Saturday today.

I didn’t even wake up until 9am. Harley and I decided to rise at 9.30am and went straight out to the pool to play. 

After play, I enjoyed fresh crab on toast for breakfast and took it into the art room where I sat for about 90 minutes adding to one of my art works …

From there I decided to watch some episodes of “Selling Houses Australia” before the football started.

My footy tipping is doing very poorly. I certainly have some work to do to catch up to everyone else!

BGWLBH had leftover salmon patties for dinner. Adoring Husband had two big fillets of cod with salad and I cut a small wedge off one of the fillets for myself.

I’ve enjoyed two smoothies today - soursop, pineapple and passionfruit. Delicious!

I’m watching “Robin Hood Prince of Thieves” with a very delicious Kevin Costner so I shall sign off so that I can drool over him before I sleep.

Nite all.

One out of Three

Three footy games and I’ve only tipped one correctly. Thankfully, my beloved Broncos won tonight!

It’s been an uneventful day.

Harley play.

Cooked breakfast.

Played trivia.

Made a smoothie.

Watched some recorded shows.

Watched the first footy match.

Made salmon patties for dinner. BGWLBH made the accompanying salad.

Watched the second footy match.

Now I have to record my Friday Falafel.

Nite all.

Self Imposed

We have officially put ourselves into self imposed lockdown for Easter.

I consider Easter to be the worst time of year for our town. The population swells as our Easter Fishing Classic attracts every man and his dog AND his family.

The only thing to do is stay at home and lock the doors to avoid the madding crowds.

I plan on doing some art, journalling, watching the football, playing with the dog and maybe playing some online trivia.

Today I decluttered my wardrobe and removed 18 tops/dresses/pants which I’ve offered to The Happy Hippy and she has joyfully accepted. I think I need to declutter some more haha.

I had a fresh crab sandwich for breakfast and I delighted in every juicy mouthful.

I received Vegan Chickie’s Wednesday Waffle video (late, obviously). I can’t remember if I’ve mentioned that we send each other a weekly video of ourselves waffling on about what happened during our week. This is our third week.

I received a phone call from Number One Son who is still in the mental health facility in WA. His treatment is not working so they are trying plan B next. There is also a plan C if it comes to it. It was nice to hear his voice and he sounded ok.

Bubbles has applied for a job with Services Australia. She currently manages a Sussans outlet in Sydney but is not happy so I hope she has some luck with this interview process.

We switched it up and had chicken wings for dinner tonight. Tomorrow is Good Friday so instead of the usual Friday night fare, we will have seafood. I have no idea why, because we are not practicing Christians but I guess any excuse to eat fresh seafood is a good one.

Adoring Husband and I watched the footy tonight. I had my usual failed tipping night while AH selected the winning team.

Now it’s time to sleep.

Nite all.

Coupla Days

We’ve had about 150mm of rain in 36 hours. 

The pool is overflowing, everything is lush and green and the temperature has dropped to a much more bearable level. We STILL have the air con running 24/7 though.

Tuesday was meditation and qi gong day, then three hours with The Gypsy. I got caught in the rain riding my trike, but I wasn’t too concerned, after all it’s only water. The day was quite exhausting, especially after a restless night so I slept very soundly on Tuesday night.

Today (Wednesday), BGWLBH and I drove in the rain to The Bay. 

We enjoyed breakfast at Salt Cafe. BGWLBH had her usual bacon and eggs, while I selected the King Prawn Omelette. Delicious.

After breakfast we visited the boutique next door - Luxe - where I found two beautiful tops which were quite pricy so I let Adoring Husband buy one (haha) and I bought the other. There was a beautiful dress too but I thought I was pushing my luck so I may return next week for that one.

We ran some other errands and then purchased our seafood for Good Friday before heading home.

Harley and I played in the rain.

We had a sausage sizzle for dinner.

I think I’m ready to sleep.

Nite all.