Tuesday

The Great K came back from his sojourn in Sydney today but he had to come back without the loads of textbooks he had taken with him; these were most of his luggage on teh way down - and could be because he was flying with JetStar and could buy luggage "space"; alas he came back with Virgin Blue who don't have the same service - so his mother was sending the books back to him by mail! Hopefully he won't need them before they arrive.

Also relying on the post . . . the Russian visa applications which M sent off today. The invitations had finally arrived last Friday and we spent part of yesterday filling out the forms (they had to be completed online and then printed out) and making sure everything was in order. First thing this morning, M was off to get them copied/signed/whatever she needed to do, and then sent everything off to the Russians in Sydney. She was paying an additional fee for having the application expedited, so hopefully there will be no isssues and they will come back early next week ... done and complete. I don't think M has booked the flights yet - they're still deciding how long she and Mouse will stay in Russia - but it has to be getting close now. M (following on A's success in booking her own overseas trip) had been thinking about booking the fares herself, without a travel agent, but in the end the ease of using a professional won out.

This afternoon I finally made it onto ROM and did the house yard so no carpet-baggers can sneak up behind S when she is hanging out the washing.

With the offer of dinner at Tian Ran on the cards, we all went to the airport with M to pick up The Great K. His plane was on time and we were back at the restaurant before 8pm trying a new dish ... mind you, it's hard to get us to have anything new - we have liked just about everything we've had there and don't mind having the same dishes again and again.

We didn't have to worry about how long we stayed out - we had done all the cats before we left home, Pearl is still visiting Nana, and The Great K doesn't move into his new digs until Friday - which means he will be sharing Latimers with us until then. He will be sleeping in the back area sharing with the cats.

Of course, we were all tired and we were on our way back home by 9:30pm - and didn't stay up late enough to investigate the winning Lotto numbers. We figures if we had won, someone would have phoned us - especially since several of us joined the syndicate F organised. The prize is $74 million - well worth winning! But even so, it can wait until morning!