Tuesday

There was talk on the radio this morning of FREE WATER in the area. While that sounds great especially after moves by the ill-fated Allconnex to greatly increase the cost of Coast water earlier this year - this latest offer is not as generous as it sounds. First off, it doesn't apply to folk - like we here at Latimers - who are not on "town water'! And it is "free" only in the sense of that from midnight tonight for ten days, water restrictions do not apply so you can hose hard surfaces, the garden, the yard - whatever you want ... but you will be charged for the water you use.

I came straight home from The Big Work House this afternoon and enjoyed some quality time with Latimers - the juvenile kookaburra who will fly away as soon as I go to get the camera, Tink who was sunning herself on the retaining wall out the back, Pearl who was freshly bathed today, sans collar, and shedding fur all over the place (note to self: remember not to pat dog furiously and dislodge fur for passing birds while wearing black pants!) and S who was bringing in the washing and enjoying a cool breeze from the fan. She told me that M is right, this is the coolest place in the house and if it could be screened in, she would sleep out here. Of course, she was speaking from the position of it being unseasonably hot here today - when I drove out this morning the thermometer on Lars was reading 28 degrees C and that was before 6am. It didn't get any cooler during the day at all - and at one stage at work we had a hot wind blowing in through the windows - it may be time to shift desks so we can be closer to the air conditioner!

Of course, the heat is good for growing things - and even though M did a fantastic job on the yard - was it only last week? - it's time for the lawn to be mowed again. I'll see if I can get out there one evening with the push mower - it gives a much nicer finish - especially for around the front.

S and I tried a new place for dinner this evening - and I would like to say that it was excellent (it was air conditioned!) and perhaps it's just that we have been going to, and like, the Advancetown Hotel - but we didn't really like the new place. S had lamb cutlets and I had the special (ribs and rump) but we both agreed that the food at Advancetown was better (especially since they appear to have changed chefs - but, they haven't actually . . . seriously when we went the time before last, the quality of the food - already good - had just improved enormously but the wait staff assured us there hadn't been a change in the kitchen staff! Go figure. Or perhaps they've started using different ingredients. Hmmm.) But back to the new place - it was nice enough ... and perhaps we made the wrong choices - but it seems the best place about it was the little ginger cat - a real cutie - in the car park after the meal. It had a collar and looked very well - and, in fact, as though it owned the place.

Tired but happy, S and I came home - so she could watch RPA and that "screaming show", and I could read some of my new Stephen King book (the title is a date - can't remember exactly which one - but I'm fairly sure it was the day President John F Kennedy - funny how you have to say it all or just as JFK - was assassinated). The furries came in and seemed content to just lounge around - except for Beazley and Pearl who busily set about grooming each other. Yep, life is good.