Friday and furries in from the cold

The rain continued to fall overnight at Latimers, making the ground very wet and soft underfoot. There will be no mowing today and there will also be no washing today. There are of course other things to do and while M was off with her JP event, S and I were off at Brunch with J and Tr, and then off to the doctors.

Tinka ... and friend!

Tinka was going nowhere fast this morning and put herself back to bed with Edmund and seemed more than happy to stay there. Yes I've said it before and I will say it again, you'd have to be pretty glad to come back as a Latimers cat! Maggie has found herself a new day bed down the back near the office and seems content to be there most of the time these days ... that is if she's not on Pearl's bed, with Pearl on the tiles next to her.

The rain has been magnificent for the plants and the ones S put in earlier this week are burgeoning. The tomatoes have grown at least 3 inches in the last day. I don't think that's much of an exaggeration.

Choo-choo MaMa and the rest of L's horses seem to be out in the rain most of the time (why don't they put themselves into their stables?) and they don't have rain jackets to keep them dry. Choo-Choo seems to have picked up some bad habits and is currently trying to "ringbark" the telegraph pole in her paddock. Someone has now painted some black stuff around the ringbarking but it doesn't seem to be stopping her from trying to eat her way through the pole.

There's been enough rain that the dams have reappeared in L's paddock. He says that's an indication of where the water table is in the area. He may be right ... it's been while since we've seen water in that paddock.

Thank goodness there was leftovers from Zen last night - S was looking forward to them for dinner - and enjoyed them very much! I had noodles as well - not quite as fancy as Zen but noodles none the less ... and something no-one else here likes ... custard - although that wasn't "with'' the noodles - that would just be too strange for me!

S and I are having a quiet night in with the furries; I've just let Maggie in and she's gone down the back to her chair. I'll check on Tinka in a little while, and, if she's in (she was the last time I saw her) we'll go into "lockdown".

 

Thursday and horse eye colours!

Note to self: next time you want to sit and have a coffee and a catch-up with the mail, do not sit at the tables immediately next to the cinema. While the smell of hot buttered popcorn may be nice for a while - at some point it starts to make you feel hungry, then ravenous, and then, inexplicably, it becomes quite overpowering, and those hunger pangs turn to queasiness. This may be the reason cinemas started selling tickets on-line - to keep the length of, and time spent in, the ticket queue manageable.

It's raining still - so the tank should be full! There are puddles everywhere - and the cane toads have appeared again.

S was back over at Varsity Lakes today and she and Je took an early mark because they had a good day - and because the residents have a monthly birthday afternoon tea and today was the day for May - so at 3 o'clock Je and S called it. Luckily I was in the area early so S didn't have to hang around long waiting for her lift. Then we went off for a coffee and debrief before heading back to Latimers. I thought S would want to have a rest (she didn't have a great night again last night) but she settled in with the television instead to catch up with some programs (Clean Houses may have been one of them). Having finished my book, and unwilling to start another so quickly (I'm still thinking about Just Between Us), I started to watch a B Grade apocalypse movie but, at about the time that they had volcanoes starting to explode out of Mayan temples in South America while Stonehenge incinerated yet another person, I decided to have a nap instead.

Meanwhile, elsewhere on the Coast, M was taking Mouse out and about to Chirn Park (near Labrador) and checking out the local coffee shops! It's good they're always on the lookout for a new Saturday breakfast spot.

M and I went off to CSP tonight and I'd like to say we had some good luck at the table this time but luck was not on our side. I do admit though to having been more than a little excited when the first four cards of one hand I picked up were all Hearts and needed only an 8 of Hearts to go with them to make the 10% Straight Flush. The last card was a 9 of Spades - and the pair of 9s I then had was enough to beat the dealer but the SF would have been nicer! Ah we'll, there's always next week! But Dinner at Zen was good, although it did take a while for it to come. M thinks they forgot to put our order in again - it has happened once before - and it was great she thought to chase them up, otherwise we might still be there waiting ... waiting ... waiting.

Horses eyes are different colours! Amber, brown, green, blue black, hazel ... and there might have been another one. Blue eyes are most common in horses that have patches of white ... and often they will have one blue eye, and the other will be a different colour! Who knew!?

Congratulations to M who received word yesterday that she has officially been accepted to the new JPs in Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal (QCAT) program which is tasked with coming up with common sense solutions to minor civil disputes of less than $3,000. She has her orientation session tomorrow - which is amazing when you know she had her training late last year. The reason for the delay - the powers that be have been waiting on formal approval for the program!

Wednesday ... still raining!

The rain came again today so it was another day with no mowing at Latimers.  And even if it had been fine and dry, it may not have been a mowing day because it is Wednesday which makes it Bingo Day! Neither S nor I could make it to Bingo today though - she was working and I was meeting J over at Robina so the timing was just not going to work - especially as J was delayed at her previous appointment. But the good news is that I got to go shopping with J and R - R was after a pair of red pants and some red shoes - and then she needed some new tops to go with them.  Hmmm ... I wonder who hates clothes shopping more - J or I?

But back to the Bingo!  There was a winner on the table today!  Em shared a Noah's Ark - although if she had been a tad quicker, or the caller a tad slower, she would have "won' outright. Those PET machines can be a bit confusing when you're one-off in multiple games!

M made an early trip to Aldi this morning because she wanted to buy one of the "weekly" specials for Pearl. It's a heated dog bed ... which I have a feeling will become a favourite for all the furries!

S had another bad night last night - broken sleep; painkillers - it just doesn't give her the chance to have a decent rest. She's off to the Doc's on Friday, for something else, so hopefully he'll be able to help her with that too!

It was another day of me not getting to the (now not-so-new-man) Star Trek movie. I almost took myself off (I know, I know, I have to find out if An and M still want to go) but at 129 minutes, I just couldn't work out how to fit it in.  Tomorrow looks the same at this point!  

But I did manage to mostly read a book today, Just Between Us, which S and I heard being discussed on ABC's Life Matters. It was interesting - about female friendships: I was surprised by the contribution I liked the best - a fiction piece by Merridy Eastman, To clear the air, from Helena to Hermia, set against the backdrop of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, or more correctly, "an email sent ... some three weeks after the play ends". See, I told you it was raining!

S, still in pain, didn't make it to Aqua tonight, but M did (how good is she!) and 10 or so others - so the pool was "crowded".  

Hermes looks incredibly handsome in his new jacket - dark blue ... does it match his eyes I wonder?  Do horses have different coloured eyes (from other horses, not from each other).  I'll have to go have a look ...

Tuesday - and Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday Sy! We went out to dinner with Sy and An at Zen to celebrate. The "we" was Mouse, M, S and I. An chose the dishes - which seemed a good way for us to finally have something else - usually, if any of us order, we end up with exactly the same things - which we have to this point been able to justify as "non-boring" by assuring ourselves that it never comes out of the kitchen the same way twice! Sy proved a difficult person to buy a gift for but, as she told us at dinner, she had given it some thought. For her birthday Sy wants S to ... can you believe I've forgotten it ... oh wait, it was something about a tagine and cooking dinner for them ... and she'd like me to take the password off her computer. That is no doubt why I couldn't remember S's "gift" straight away, I was busy trying to remember which version of Windows Sy has - and how the admin rights differ between versions. (They are right!! I can only do one thing at a time.)

Tinka went back to the vet yesterday and her insulin has been adjusted again: "5.5 to 6" morning and night. As the syringes only have whole unit marks, it can be a bit challenging to get the dose exactly right - but M keeps trying. The next visit is in a month and, as always, It will be interesting to see if Tinka has stabilised by then. lt's been a while now since she was diagnosed and they seem no closer to an effective regime.

It rained a fair bit here today. M said she went out this morning to jump on ROM but she was too late - the rain had already arrived. But it was a good day for being inside - especially for Pearl who at one stage had put herself up on the couch next to S. And no, although anyone who knows S and Pearl would be right to suspect it, it wasn't around lunchtime!

I'm not sure if it's today or tomorrow but analogue television transmissions get switched off on the Gold Coast sometime soon: the tech from the ratings company offered to fix digital set top boxes in the house but M has decided that she may go down the new television (with built-in DVD) route instead. It isn't critical at the moment though because there's always iView for catch-ups for ABC programs or recording with the main TV which is digital, as well as being hooked up to cable.

Monday - here we go again!

M helped S put her new garden in today when S finally started using her "My First Garden" Christmas present! M also helped her set up a new area (and trellis) for the broad beans S is planning to grow. I did help just a little, shovelling some dirt and helping M reposition the trellis but really the new area is a testament to both their hard work. Now if only the cats can be persuaded to stay off! And the magnetic letters to stay on! Just as well no-one here fishes because if they did the compost worms would be in big trouble. They are, of course, quite magnificent - juicy, plump, big and very healthy looking ... and there are lots and lots of them (and yes, it is me who isn't a big fan of worms - as Mi doesn't let me forget), but I do admire these earthworms - carving out their little piece of the environment right here at Latimers.

Sooz's Garden

S and M took themselves off to Aqua mid-morning where they met Sy, and then An (still out of Aqua action because of her sore paw) - after she had been to Zarraffas - then they all trekked off to Ferry Road for lunch where I joined them!

Earth worms!

M did some more work in Suz's garden this afternoon - putting up some wire to gently dissuade the cats from jumping up into the garden and doing what they sometimes do there. Hopefully it will work because since S put some plants in a week or so ago, they have been trampled just a little by the furries. The only one who hasn't been in there (as far as we can tell) is Pearl.

Trivia was a bit of a bust again tonight - it was fine but I think we really picked the wrong categories for our bonus rounds - but it really is just the luck of the pick and how the questions fall on the night. They fell badly ... or was that us?

I think M had a potentially more satisfying night by going to dinner with Mouse! They watched "The Voice" and did a Skype call with Turkey!

There was a mist in the Valley as we drove back from Trivia tonight. This probably means there will be an even bigger mist hereabouts in the morning: I'm looking forward to it and hopefully there will be a photo opportunity.

 

Sunday and the Rock Stars

They were getting part of the Turf Club ready for a boxing match so the markets were being held in the car park. As usual we ignored that advice and took up a position in the marquee because we didn't know that was where the boxing match was going to happen until one of the guys tasked with setting up the boxing ring came and told us that we would need to move. So in the end we did move out into the sunlight and it was a nice welcome change to be warm at the markets in winter ... well, almost in winter.

Where is Sherlock Holmes when you need him? When I met Mouse in the car park this morning she revealed that she had no idea of the whereabouts of the Murse* ... there it was then ... The Mystery of the Missing Murse ... although, suggested Mouse, it might have been with M because she was the last one to buy coffee at the Markets. (*Murse: a man-purse. Very fashion-forward right now. It's where the kitty for the Markets Coffee is kept). Ah well, it was time for a Murse top-up anyway so in some went and we managed the first (and second rounds) on that. As it turned out the Murse was found as soon as Em arrived - although because we were sitting in a different part of the Markets, she missed seeing us and Az had to chase her down before she left the area! But as soon as Em arrived, she produced the Murse! We're still not quite sure how she ended up with it - whether she had picked it up at the Markets last week or whether Fl, the usual custodian (when Mouse isn't), had handed it to her because he knew he was off and playing Golf today rather than coming to the Markets! And he wasn't the only one missing ... at our best today we could only manage 9!

Newly-mown lawn

Post-Markets I dropped S at Bunnings for another plants run while I forced myself to the local service station to buy some ("please don't make me buy it at this price") petrol! More enjoyable was the next stop ... Latimers ... and mowing! It's been a while but because it is cooler now, even though it's had a bit of rain, it's not that long (tall?). I managed to mow the yard and the strip out front in just over an hour and a half (including mower cleaning)!

Foals

The Rock Stars are as gorgeous as always! I took a walk down to see them, and B's foals, this afternoon after I'd taken Pearl for her walk ... and, yes, Pearl agreed to do the second time down the lane without complaining or even pretending she was heading home. Of course, she could not be encouraged to do the third wander down the lane - which I had actually been counting on as I don't like taking her past B's gate into the horse area - and that was where I was headed. How are you going to stop Pearl going - asked S as I escorted Pearl inside. I just won't tell her where I'm going, I told her ... and I didn't ... and Pearl didn't even try to follow me.

Rock Star Transport

The foals wandered over to say hello as I approached their yard, first one and then the other. They have really grown (cuter!) since I've seen them - and that was a while ago now. The last time was just a couple of days after they were born - which I think was around the end of last year!

There was no sign of the Dalmatian (or Spotty Dog as we sometimes call him) but the Clydesdales were there - four of them - all stabled. They are amazing - so big and yet so calm and interested in what's going on outside!

Saturday and a day in!

The gale force winds we were supposed to get last night on the Coast didn't eventuate here at Latimers so everything is still where it should be. It's always a good way to start the day!

Except for a quick trip out to gather supplies, I had a day in. It was a nice change, as it was for S who didn't go out at all. M did bring back coffee after her Deep Water Running excursion (thanks M!), and she was home for a while before she was off again, this time in the 4-wheel drive, to help Az with something for Ne. She's good like that, always willing to help.

Moon over Latimers

S and I did have Mouse leftovers for dinner - and, as is usually the case, they were even better second time round. S made mashed potato (divine!!) to go with the stuffed onions and rissoles, and some green beans which Maggie, the cat who loves green things, missed by ''that" much!

We watched a huge yellow moon rise over the trees at the back of Latimer s... a truly heart-lifting sight (which I didn't quite capture on the camera).

S, quite uncharacteristically, is feeling the cold at the moment and has decided she needs a blanket under the doona, Amazingly (but not really surprisingly!) Tinka wanted to help re-make the bed in the new configuration - and could not be dissuaded that three really is a crowd when it comes to bed-making, especially when the third is a cat! But she had a good time, and we finally did manage to get it done ... around, over and beside her! Thanks Tinka!

Friday and Mouse onions

"It's raining at Carrara!" said I, looking out the window as we readied ourselves for our late checkout from The Big House. S was not surprised because, as we learned soon after arriving on the Gold Coast, it is often raining at Carrara even if it's not raining anywhere else on the Coast.

After breakfast at Morning CheeseLand, S had a big nap to catch up on some of last night's sleep which eluded her then. I had one too but only for a hour of so before I took myself down to Spinners for a coffee and a "write".

Then we, after leaving The Big House, we had time to do a quick lap of Pacific Fair before we met the usual crowd (minus Mi) at The Coffee Club.

There was a bit of discussion about Ne who made the trip from London to Bosnia earlier this week for a funeral - but it wasn't straightforward - the trip that is. She drove herself from the airport to destination (rather than get a lift) and that was when the "fun" started ... with her phone going flat and her lost and driving at night in unknown territories. The scariest part was when she was being tailgated with someone flashing her with their lights. She had the presence of mind to pull into a petrol station ... and the car kept going - which is how the person who had come to escort her had to come back to get her ... it was him flashing her to get her attention. Ne has the best "adventures"!

We made it back to Latimers by mid-afternoon and had time to do some things before M arrived home and then we were all off to Mouse's for dinner. She had been waiting all week to host - after she found the key dinner ingredient - big white onions which she stuffed with mince. Yumm. The onions weren't the only things to come home with us; there was also some noodle soup - and rissoles which we're planning to have for dinner tomorrow night. (S and I went out last Saturday night so we won't be out on a Saturday night for a while again... and Mouse's leftovers are a great excuse to stay in.)

The Rock Stars are back at B's. They arrived on Wednesday in their big red truck. It looks like their transport has been spruced up or replaced with a higher, better model! The Dalmatian is still travelling with them though reported M who saw them all being spruced up the other day. We're not sure what gigs they're here for, but we hope they enjoy their stay as much as they usually do. And their humans too.

Thursday and The Big House

M saved us some!

There was a wonderful blanket of fog hanging over the hill in front of the Latimers lane - which means it's a bit cool again. It was another work day for S and we were off to Maccas (and morning television - yippee!) to wait for Je to collect her! It was only a "half day" though which meant they'd be working only until 1:30pm - then, after a drop-off at Zarraffas, we were heading home to finish packing and then off to Broadbeach - and an overnight at the Big House. M and Mouse were there earlier today at the big Chari-tea (a Big Morning Tea event, raising funds for Cancer research). It was a good event - with lots of tea and snacks on offer. You filled teapots with your choice of tea and took them back to your table; and luckily it didn't rain because it was held outside in the Gardens.

Bagged bananas?

I spent the morning at home but the furries kept mainly to themselves; Pearl was sleeping in our room; Tinka was nowhere obvious; and Maggie was in her daybed. Maggie didn't stay there though - she ran away as I approached her - not actually her but M's bicycle... yes, it's finally wearing me down - by just sitting there! But today was not the day ... first the back tyre needs to be pumped up. And thanks ER for the advice about the brake controls ... nothing’s going to stop me now ... oh wait ...

Prolific greens

Pearl and I did make it down the back though to check the bagged bananas (is that an Ikea bag?) and to be stunned at the garden beds - I thought they were lying fallow but there is a profusion of green in them. S said that they could be self-sewn tomatoes from when the beds were cleared but whatever they are, they're certainly doing very, very well!

Broadbeach view

I admit that one of the things I marvel at in life is S's sense of direction. It remains infallible and can totally be relied on... in the reverse. It is a rare skill indeed to always go the wrong way. I was reminded of it today at the Big House where we have an overnight stay (thanks M). On the way out of the room to CheeseLand (aka The Executive Club), S turned the wrong way, and again, on the way back to the room, out of CheeseLand, she turned the wrong way again. But what I find most amazing (besides how consistent she is) is that she is so good with everything else - names, faces, dates, places, relationships, trivia, words - it's just the locating bit of her brain that's lost! Luckily I do have location - but would probably gladly swap it for the ability to recognize a face!

Broadbeach view too.

M came back in to Broadbeach to have dinner with us at Spinners and S finally had the Discrimination Special ... Roast Chicken (a whole one), with seasonal vegetables, mashed potato and gravy. M coined the term the Discrimination Special last month when Jupiters introduced different pricing for its "special" - depending on your Jupiters Casino Absolute Rewards tier, this month it's either $19.90; $14.90; $12.90 or $9.90. Yes, it's exactly the same dish - just the price is different!

Wednesday - did someone say "Bingo"?

At some point yesterday, and I can't remember who or where, someone said "Bingo" to me ... and on the basis of that I decided to join the girls for Bingo again. When I say "the girls", I mean Em, An, M (not the musician) and Mouse because S was off at work with Je again ... so I took her seat! And it was a good decision because during the first half I managed to get a Full House! It was very exciting when my PET machine beeped ... and then, when a couple of calls later, my final number came up. Unfortunately, though, I was the only one to have luck at our table ... but at least I was able to contribute to the Kitty - so I was very pleased about that.

An was there, still nursing her sore hand, but it does seem to be giving her less trouble - and she is getting much better with playing her PET machine with her left hand. It is amazing how versatile we can be - as long as we have a bit of practice. An was saying she can even sign her name with her left hand now!

It was a fairly full morning! We left M at home while I took S out to breakfast and then dropped her at work over in Ashmore. There is so much more of the Gold Coast I am getting to see since she started working with Je! Then, it was back to Nerang for a cup of coffee with J ... we had chosen here because someone from our high school years is here on a Tues/Wed/Thurs morning - or is supposed to be, because she was nowhere to be seen this morning! Ah well, hopefully we'll have better luck next time. But it was good to catch up with J and find out how things are going up her way ... and it would be better if she had good news but it seems the struggle for control is ongoing and will not be quickly resolved ... that's what you get when you get teenagers and someone who is a tad older and used to things being the ways they were "in my day" in the same household. She's not quite sure how or when it will resolve at this stage ... but she seems to think that a "weekly whinge" will help her stay sane until it does! I guess when it comes down to it ... that's what friends are for!

It's raining here today (they were right about cloud cover because there is that too). It has given it a very grey, winter's day feel and I noted that I was the only one sitting in the outdoors area at Maccas as I waited for Je to drop S off. It will be interesting to know if the rainwater tank is filled again yet but I suppose since we're not on it at the moment, it's something we don't need to worry about straight away.

M thought Jungle John was coming earlier this week - he's supposed to come every fortnight now - but he hasn't been sighted yet. I haven't thrown out the note she left the other day about what she wanted done when he did come. She did see Ka this morning though and apparently had a good catch-up with her.

S was not a starter for Aqua again tonight - she's been in pain again but hopefully she'll be back on deck (and in the pool) next week.

I watched the final episode of Grimm (Season 2) this evening and it is a cliffhanger. At the end the usual "TO BE CONTINUED ..." flashed up on the screen, and then, quite uncharacteristically "OH COME ON, YOU KNEW THIS WAS COMING" - and yes, I did but only in the last few minutes when I realised ... that I can't say anymore without doing spoilers!

Tuesday and "Today"

The mornings are quite chilly at the moment and there was a light mist hanging over the yard this morning making it even prettier than usual! Of course, I didn't manage to get that photograph - but the sunrise was nice too!

Thankfully, even though she didn't have the best night's sleep last night, S did feel better than yesterday - which is good since she's working with Je today. I handed her over after breakfast - Je picked her up from Maccas, and we'll do the change back there again this afternoon.

The only problem with hanging out at Maccas in the morning is that I now realise that I am addicted to morning television - well, actually it's the "Today" show and their closed-caption subtitles. The subtitlers do an amazing job keeping up with the dialogue but sometimes they do transcribe some odd things. It's definitely worth tuning in - especially as you can sometimes see just how they can get "confused"!

Finally today is "Haircut day" and it has been too long coming! I filled time until they had an available appointment by walking around the shopping centre ... I didn't realise there was so much to do and look at in ... what shopping centre is this?

The Ugg (Ugh?) boots are out in force - it's certainly cold enough for them! Word from the metrologists in this morning's paper is that we'll have some cloud cover in the next couple of days and that should mean a 10 degree increase in temperatures. That probably means daytime temperatures though - we may still be in single digits overnight!

There are some people who aren't making any concessions for the weather and they're the ones walking around in t-shirt and shorts. One t-shirt was quite imaginative, if a little rude: no words (didn't need them), two hands with one finger extended on each: on the left, the middle finger pointed straight up; on the right, an index finger pointed straight ahead to the beholder, but there was really no beauty there - and certainly no room for confusion!

S went in for a nap before dinner and M arrived home in time to do the furries. I had started to take Pearl for a walk but Pearl must have heard the car coming down the lane because she was "resistant"... and yes, this is the very same Pearl who sometimes sleeps through people arriving home! It turned into a quiet night in. S cooked dinner - meat and three vegetables - from the Meat Tray we won at Trivia last night and then S and M settled in to watch New Tricks while I did kitchen clean-up duties and then sent off cv information to a recruitment agent I had spoken to during the day while I watched this season's final episode of Elementary. I love how the writers' minds work on this show!

You can tell it's colder too - yet again Tinka has cuddled up on the sheepskin next to S on the couch - well before it's anywhere near lockdown time! And was that flannelette M was wearing?

 

Monday - and a good deed

M was off being a (much appreciated) Good Samaritan this morning by the time we were up. She was taking An off to the doctor for a review of her hand - so she can finally find out what he did during the operation last Monday, and, more importantly, the prognosis. It sounds as though it was a torrid visit - once the splint came off, there was much pain - so much so that An almost fainted... and then did faint. Luckily she had M with her who then "tended" her when they left the doctor's until she was sure the colour had returned and she could be left by herself at home - but with Ashley the electrician keeping an eye on her until Sy arrived home.

Egg mystery - what happened here?

Closer to home, S wasn't feeling on top of the world and decided to have the morning off rather than going to Aqua. M did manage to get there and reported that there were only three in the class!!

The horses down near B's stables seemed to be very agitated this afternoon. they were pig-rooting and galloping up and down their paddocks. The reason? One of the other horses was in the "lane" between the yards ... and talking to Hermes! M said that was more than enough to unsettle them!

M's bike was calling to me today and I only just managed to resist. Thinking about it now, I really should have done a test ride while EE and ER were here ... they would have been able to administer medical help/stabilise me while we waited for the ambulance (we are a fair way out here) after I fell off. Yes, they do say that you never forget - but that was in the days before dual gear controls and when you braked by stepping backwards on the pedals, rather than having brake controls on both handles (which side for which wheel?).

The new 0ccy strap worked well on the rubbish bin on the way up to the road this evening - and hopefully it, and the one on the recycling bin M took up, will still be there when they come back down.

Trivia did not go as well as hoped this evening. S stayed home so we were one down for the second half - but not for the first half as Sy stayed while she had dinner and made sure An was okay. The best we could manage tonight was equal third - with three other teams who also scored 70 for the night out of a possible 80. Ni made a valiant attempt at the tie-break question: what is the atomic weight of Mercury? Her first suggestion was 80 but she wasn't totally sure if that was right - she was going on its relative position on the Periodic Table (which she drew for us). In the end we wrote down 82 ... but should have stayed with her original answer (something we are always encouraging each other to do) which was right; our 82 was 2 away; one of the other teams had 79 - giving them third place, the $15 voucher and an entry into the cash draw. Ah well, this is our second week off the Podium ... hopefully next week we'll have both An and S and that will hopefully elevate us back into "contender" status!

Latimers was in lockdown by the time I arrived back after dropping An home and mailing Mouse's puzzle entries. M was ironing again - to Q&A this time - and both she and S played "answer the Trivia questions" - and if they'd been there we could easily have made outright second, maybe even first.

It's cool tonight - and wonderfully clear with a sky full of stars twinkling down on the Valley. It doesn't get much nicer than this!

 

Sunday and Eurovision finals

It's another fantastic day! The sun is shining and there's a very gentle breeze blowing - which makes it heaps better than Sydney where Tr was rugged up in a jacket, wrapped in a blanket, had the heater on nearby and was cradling a hot coffee during our Skype call this morning. The sky outside her window looked bleak and Wintery ... not bad for Autumn - but it's only supposed to be a "cold snap". For her sake, hopefully it is! Mind you, it is a little cold here as well - especially when we're still sitting under cover at the Markets, and with a cool wind coming in from the back of the Turf Club, it is definitely jumper territory!

We thought there would be more people (generally) at the Markets today - given the number of vehicles in the car park - but the folk inside seemed to be fewer than you'd expect. We were a reduced number ourselves at the Markets - with Mi and Nu away, it seems much quieter.

The good news is that Mi did score a window seat for the flight to Dubai. The flight was fairly full but when she got on board she asked a steward if there was any chance at all of a window seat. As it turns out there was one but it didn't have a working television but, said Mi, who called FI from the plane to let him know, she didn't care ... and, voila, seat change! She was happy with the person she was sitting next to too, so hopefully the flight was good - and that she managed to catch up with some sleep too.

Star Trek Into Darkness almost happened today but An's hand is starting to give her some trouble - enough that she is prepared to start taking painkillers (she's not keen on them at all) - and she's decided to lay low for the day. She'll let us know if the situation changes.

The girls are watching Clean Houses at the moment - I'm not sure what S sees in it but I do worry that she'll call an Australian crew in (if they ever produce it here) to clean up my area - and that wouldn't be too bad if they could find my camera charger!

Denmark won Eurovision although we weren't glued to the set watching it. It takes the suspense out if it a little if they broadcast the results 7+ hours before the finals even start here. S did turn over to them a couple of times but the Season 2 final of Call the Midwife was definitely the more popular choice of the night. As was ironing for M - she set the board up in the viewing area and powered through it. I think it was her way of keeping herself up - after she almost declared at 7:22 that it was time for bed - thinking it was much much later!

Maggie had really taken to her day bed and was there late into the evening until M went to fetch her in. Tinka had been inside and in bed for hours by that stage (she can't reach the ironing board and has no clothes to iron anyway!) Pearl was doing her usual thing of keeping everyone company - although not on the couch tonight - and she's very good at that!

Welcome to Saturday

What better way to start the day then with breakfast at Daniel Stuart (I can't believe I've been getting it wrong all this time! It's Stuart not Stewart). It was good - the food was great - the only down side was that construction is still underway in the street outside and this morning they're pumping water out the pit. It's pretty noisy - and very annoying. But the meal, ambiance and company - and that the noise did stop from time to time - made it tolerable.

It was another glorious day here on the Coast and when we arrived home we sat out in the sunshine for a while - just soaking it up. Pearl joined us, and even take for a while - before they got too hot. They weren't the only ones who got hot - as we sat there (and I admit, yes, I did doze off, leaving the iPad in the sun) a message came on the iPad - a temperature alert - advising the iPad could not work until it had cooled down. Who knew?

We went over to Mi's this afternoon to drop off the noise-cancelling headphones for her to take with her. (Funny that I knew exactly where to find those but I still can't find my camera charger). There were other folk there as well - Mouse was there with pancakes and markets jam, Em was there helping out, Ba was out by the pool, M arrived just as we did, and Ma and Ro arrived a little while after us. It was a good catch-up and we will all miss her while she's away especially F who's pretending (as usual) that he won't. I wasn't that surprised when Eurovision made it into topics of conversation: Mouse had watched it; others had taped it.

As we left, Mi was getting ready to get changed and then they'd be off to the airport for her 9pm flight. She needs to get to the airport early because she hasn't yet had her seat allocated - the only ones left were aisle seats and she wasn't keen on one of those for the 14-hour flight to Dubai.

We met An and Sy for dinner at the Nerang RSL. An and S were keen to have the Lamb Cutlets special until they found out they had run out. So they had to change - but they weren't given the same option as M when she arrived a short time later ... lamb chops. The dinners weren't bad ... even though I think I made the wrong choice and was disappointed that the only green on my plate was the pumpkin skin - obviously there are currently no seasonal vegetables that are green.

Then, fuelled up, it was time to dance! It is very odd for S and I to be out on a Saturday night! We were glad we'd gone - it was a good night - much better than it has been on the other nights we've been to their dance. Unfortunately while we were off having fun, we weren't recording Death in Paradise (but it is available on ABC's iView) or Eurovision's Semi-Final 2. But the Finals are on tomorrow night so we'll see the best of 2 then!

The furries were inside and under lockdown by the time S and I arrived home ... and the sensor lights are still working... bonus!

Friday ... week's end

The rain has really stopped and it was a glorious day here on the Gold Coast - nice and sunny. And that means it was finally washing day again ... and we made good use of it - getting two full washing lines out and dry.

Ashley came back this morning to finish the patch-up on the wall (for the line for the bore pump); and to give us a refresher on the workings of the outside sensor lights. They have been perplexing - sometimes they work, sometimes they don't.

We met up with Mouse and the others at The Coffee Club for Friday lunch. We wanted to go as Mi has brought her trip to visit her father forward as he is not doing as well as he had been. She leaves tomorrow night, two weeks earlier than they had originally planned, There is much to do before she goes but with M and F's help, she seems to have it under control.

At The Coffee Club

The Eurovision Song Contest starts tonight - well the first Semi-Final that we see here in Australia anyway. S made me watch the Eurovision the first year we were together - and I'm glad she did because since then we have seen some amazing acts ... and I admit I was more than a little surprised when we moved up here to find that M and her family are avid watchers of the Eurovision too! Later: The staging, as always, is incredible - and so varied for each performance. But I suppose they have been producing the Show for a good many years and know what keeps audiences entertained, engaged and voting! I hope I can stay up for Montenegro - the picture of their performance looks incredible. We've gone into lockdown early tonight but the furries don't seem to mind: they're either watching the Eurovision with us or have put themselves to bed already.

On the way home from CSP last night, the moon was stunning. It was only a crescent but it was sitting very low to the horizon - and the Ptolemy effect had it looking quite huge and yellow.

 

Thursday and Beenleigh

I met J for breakfast in Beenleigh this morning. I think this is the first time I've been there - and I may not have made it there at all had I followed J's direction to leave the Motorway at Exit 63. She was close - it was actually Exit 35 ... but even with that, Gomez, the GPS, made sure I arrived there. Yes, I was a little early but it was new territory for me and I would rather get there a bit earlier rather than panic because I'm running late. In any case, I had time to have some coffee and do some reading before she arrived. We were there (Beenleigh) because her car is due for its 30k km service and hopefully the car was ready when she returned for it ... "will they ring you when it's done?" I asked, and she said they hadn't last time so she would just wander over and see how they were going. Yes, they certainly do some things differently in the not-so-Big-Smoke!

When I called S to see what was happening back at home, she told me that she and M were out to breakfast. After that, it was Bunnings so S could get some more plants; and M got some 0ccy straps to replace the ones from the rubbish bins.

D came today to do mowing and some weed-whacking. We knew it was cold when he went to get a jumper. He was right to be (cold) of course because just over the last few days the weather has turned more than a little chilly. S, wonderful person that she is, has put the Mars/Venus Winter Doona on the bed - possibly because she has noticed me putting my feet under Tinka during the night trying to keep them warm.

Tinka on the horse rug

I had a small computer setback today but it was a good opportunity to see what was on the machine. Luckily the new drivers I had installed survived the refresh! Ah well, it was a chance to revisit which programs I had stripped off the G6 to increase the start-up speed - and the good news is that I can now do it all again!

L's horses have been moved around in the paddocks again ... it's hard to keep track of them sometimes. Unfortunately the moves are because of some injuries - Lottie has a cut on her face (they're not sure how she got it) and I think I heard Holly had something wrong with her hoof.

Closer to home, Hermes has a new rain rug - and the cats are taking turns sitting on Hermes' other rugs that the girls have been leaving out the back for M to wash.

Welcome to Wednesday

At first I couldn't work out what all the barking was but then I realised, after I heard the whooshing of the gas burn, that it was a hot air balloon. I didn't have the real camera with me but I did manage to take a (fairly arty?) shot with the iPhone.

Balloon aloft

Welcome to Wednesday! Bingo Day! Well, it's actually Breakfast and Bingo Day for S and M although I did join them this morning at Ferry Road after I had already been to Zarraffas and bumped into An there. Her hand is bandaged up to her elbow to hold the splint in place after Monday's operation. She hasn't spoken with the doctor yet, and won't until next Monday so she's not quite sure what he ended up doing and what the prognosis is. She is having varying pain levels but she is being incredibly compliant including wearing the (dreaded) sling to keep her arm supported. But what she really wants is a knitting needle - something to do with being able to scratch under her cast/bandage.

Bingo was a bit of a disappointment today for most of us but at least An and Mouse had a win! They were the only ones to do so at our table today although M and Em did have "one off" a few times and when their PET machines beeped, it was very exciting - especially when I thought it was mine!

Lunch was at Daniel Stewart's again today - and, as usual, it was good ... very good. The Salt and Pepper Calamari was a favourite - Em and Mouse shared one and An had it as well. S had the Thai Beef which she said was very nice as welI - and it certainly did look it.

M gave An a left home after lunch and S and I fell back into the Southport RSL Club to see if we could win their Trivia Competition - they select players and ask them questions from Monday night's Trivia. If you get a question right, you win $40. It was worth a try, especially as we knew all the answers from Monday - it's just a pity we didn't know them on Monday! Alas, we had no more luck than we did then - well, not with the Trivia questions - our membership numbers just didn't come up; but we did okay on the poker machines.

Then it was home so S could have a quick rest before it was time for Aqua. She (and the stand-in instructor) is very pleased with her progress - which is fantastic!

 

Tuesday

Maggie stood looking out the door and thought better of it... no she wouldn't be going outside into the rain this morning. Yes, it is still raining here at Latimers and it doesn't look as though it's going to stop any time soon!

The good news is that the water is still on which means (touch wood - yes we're still doing that) the bore pump is still on-line and operational. That's been fabulous given we all wanted to keep having (inside) showers while EE and ER were here.

On the road again

Hermes came over to the fence while EE was out the back this morning. She took a photo of him - and then some more as I gave him carrots - I'm not sure where Pearl was while this was happening because we know she's usually very fond of a carrot but this time she was nowhere to be seen.

EE and ER finally made it away on the next leg of their mobile home tour just before lunchtime. They are on the way to Nimbin to meet up with some friends there before starting their real trek southward back to Sydney via Katoomba. Being more adventurous than me, even though EE has likened driving the mobile home to driving a bouncy castle, they took the road through the Mountains to Nimbin. S has been that way with brother Mi and says it is very scenic and beautiful - and just a little windy - as in full of twists and bends as opposed to winds. We had a quiet afternoon after they left - or rather S did; I was off. out and about doing some errands ... and it is amazing how long they can take!

Pearl - waiting for ...

Tuesday night is "New Tricks'' night and M and S watched it but unlike in the last few days, there was only the clicking of one set of knitting needles coming from the television area. I don't think M is that keen to pick up a knitting needle although word is that An is ... but more on that tomorrow.

In the meantime, it appears the rain has stopped ... it looks like EE and ER took it with them - and if that is the case, hopefully they will manage to shake it!

 

Monday - comes around fast

Sleep in? Don't mind if I do - even though I hadn't planned to - but on some level I must have wanted to because when I gave Tinka her shot at 5:30, and crawled back into bed, I didn't set an alarm. The first noise I heard after that was the phone ringing - a telemarketer for the Leukemia Door Knock. S was very nice to them as she said "no" and wished them well in the campaign. I'm not sure if she asked them if they were in "green" - on target for the day.

Aqua

The next noise was S's phone which was harder to ignore. But since it was 9:45 at that stage, it was definitely time to be on the move. I tried to tell that to Tinka who was still in bed with me - but she wasn't at all interested. But then, she wasn't taking S to Aqua either!

EE and ER graciously agreed to come to Aqua as well and they looked totally comfortable and, especially during the warm down, at peace in the pool.

After Aqua, we were going to Ferry Road to get some bread for lunch; which then became get the bread and have a coffee; which then became have lunch and a coffee. It was good though ... and afterwards EE and ER took themselves off and had a very successful shopping trip at (Kathmandu one of their favourite stores, as is Anaconda ... there might be a theme happening here!)

N - back from arguing a point

It wasn't our best outing at Trivia tonight. We didn't even make it onto the Podium let alone come first. St and Fl would put it down to the wrong choice of bonus rounds - and yes "This and That" was less than kind to us tonight... but as S says, if we're finding it difficult, everyone else will be too ... but possibly not given our score in the mid-60s as opposed to others in the 70s tonight! But it is fantastic that Craig is back. He was missed!

EE and ER decided to give Trivia a miss tonight - they were working on their travel plans instead - especially since they now know Armidale is due to have some very, very cold nights - which is okay if you're holed up in a warm place but not so much if you're in a mobile home watching, waiting for the windows to freeze over! And it certainly is getting cooler here at Latimers - there was a thick fog hanging over the Valley tonight - spectacular ... but not as spectacular as this morning's double rainbow over the stables at the end of the lane. (I missed it thanks to my sleep-in but everyone else saw and enjoyed it.)

It is still raining at Latimers - the tank is filling, the grass is growing, and down on the main road, the bitumen is disintegrating. Luckily they were working on it tonight - taking up sections of the road and relaying the surface rather than just filling in the rain holes. Hopefully it will hold for longer than tomorrow - and that any one coming along that road will notice the flashing lights of the roadworks before they're right on top of them.

I had forgotten how much fun doing the cat litter trays could be. With M away (she is staying with Mouse tonight as EE and ER are still with us and one of them is staying in her room), I have taken over some of the furries duties: I do Tinka's shot and breakfasts in the morning, S does the evenings, and I do the trays and the Pearl walking.

The good news is that I remembered to take the rubbish up to the road this evening; the bad news is that the occy strap we use for securing the bin to the anchor points in the boot didn't make it. I ended up using a dog lead I found in the garage and that did work but it was a fairly anxious trip - the last thing I wanted to be doing was picking up rubbish strewn up the lane if the rig failed. So, to be on the safe side, I took it up first - before we were due to leave for Trivia - that way I wouldn't be working to a time imperative as well!

 

Sunday ... Happy Mother's Day

All over the county (world?) Mothers have been roused with breakfast in bed. That didn't happen here! But I was up and out early so I could do the Tr call from Maccas. Since everybody was asleep at Latimer there was really nowhere I could make the call from at home. It was good though - and not overly busy since I think most of the mothers who are usually there on a Sunday were, in fact, still eating their breakfasts at home in bed!

By the time I got back to Latimers, ER was still asleep and EE (in bed in her pyjamas) and S were chatting. l thought that meant we weren't going to the Markets but what it actually meant was that the travellers weren't going ... they were going to do some washing and have a slow start to the day before S picked them up to go to lunch!

Hmmm. Mi is still away at her yoga retreat so FI was on his own today. Unfortunately, because we were so late arriving at the Markets ourselves, we don't know if he was on time - and therefore sincere in his previous protestations that it was/is always Mi's fault when they are late.

Poolside

On the way to the Markets, we stopped in at the Florist to get some flowers for Mouse for Mother's Day. We weren't the only ones to remember Mother's Day. FI had brought flowers for all the mothers and as more arrived he went off to get them some as well. What a kind man - especially as he's previously said he's not that into Mother's Day. He must be missing Mi.

After the Markets, we made a quick stop at the Post office to send off a parcel for S's Mum, then JB Hi-Fi (they're having a 20% off DVD sale and I still had my birthday gift card burning a hole in my wallet) before moving on to The Big House to look at M and Mouse's accommodation (Mouse is in the House). They had a suite - and it is... big, There is the bedroom with en suite, then the living area with lounge space including a very, very big television, three seater lounge, two large side chairs, large coffee table, an eight-seater dining setting, kitchenette and desk area. And the view was fantastic - from the Beach to Benowa - from the wall of windows - and from the balcony, complete with outside table and chairs. It was, as M had suggested, well worth seeing - and it's going to be hard for M to top for Mouse next Mother's Day!

Panorama from the Suite

S had taken her swimmers in case it was warm enough to swim in Jupiters' Pool. It wasn't really as it turned out but both she and M went in - although they didn't linger - preferring the spa (for five times I think they said) to the relative cool of the pool.

We had a quick bite of late lunch at Spinners before S dropped EE and ER to The Big House. This was their first time so I gave them a quick tour of the ground floor, took a photo of them with the huge mural on the welcoming wall of the Casino entrance, before ushering them out to the car park, into the car, and back to Latimers. We left M and Mouse there for the Sweet Sunday draws, and I think they were planning to have dinner with Fl and Mi later this evening,

The Big House

I had a text from C in Melbourne today - and thanks to his partner's massive phone credit he wanted to know if I was free for a chat tonight. A quick confer with the girls, a plan re when dinner would be ready - and yes, I was free for a chat. Although his life does seem to have improved since he separated from his wife, he's not totally happy as he no longer has access to his children - his wife has banned it, even though she really can't. People can be ... people can't they?

S cooked a roast chicken dinner tonight and it was absolutely magnificent. The furries were also impressed - and very interested. It's just as well there was some lean white meat left over for them to have a (very small) taste each or I fear we would have had a rebellion on our hands!

Potatoes - for the roast.

EE, ER and S settled into an evening of television viewing after dinner and while I couldn't hear the click of knitting needles from their general direction, when I took some watermelon over to them (dessert ... thanks M! And thanks to FaceBook for showing me how to cut up a watermelon in 20 seconds ... I took a tad longer but the technique was the same!), each of them had to put down their handicraft to partake.

20-second watermelon

It's almost time for lockdown so I'm off to make sure the cats are in and that Pearl has been out! Well, that was amusing. Pearl was barking at the back door then raced down to the front ,,, still barking. She raced out - to do what she does on the lawn - and then took off, I could hear barking further away than I like it. I went out the back to call her - fearing she was on her way to Fox Hollow - and also worried that Maggie was still out (Tinka was fast asleep in bed!) - and as I was calling her at the back door, she came tearing through the front door and raced up the back to me. The girls laughed! I suppose it was comical and I could laugh once I had everyone in (Maggie was in the cat bed out the front) and locked down for the night!

 

Saturday and Spiders

Spider! Spider! I don't get to exclaim that very often - and certainly, thank goodness, not as I am about to step into the car ... but today was an exception! Just as I was about to get in (and I had already been in the car to drive it out of the garage), I noticed movement down near the seatbelt anchor ... and on closer examination it proved to be a large huntsman spider. They're venomous, the others told me, but they have small mouths so they can't really bite you. Fair enough, but they hadn't seen how big this thing was. Anything that big had to have a bigger than average mouth for a spider ... and it was far too close to my leg to be able to stay in the car. Our first attempt to extract it didn't work and it scurried under the seat - and it was at about this point with no-one willing to get back into the car with in that we went looking for the insecticide/spidercide! Yes, I know this puts us in the category of "spider killer" but I know if it crawled on me when I was driving, anything could have happened. Several sprays later, and a quick look through the car without finding a corpse, we decided to risk it and, with a little seat rearrangement so S was sitting behind me in spider territory, we were finally on our way!

It was a "good" breakfast - good coffee; good company and good food. We were seven today: Sy and An, S and I, M and EE and ER. Even though ER hadn't met Sy or An before, EE had met Sy, and everyone fell into a comfortable conversation - about camping, knitting and ... well, perhaps not everyone needs to know the full details of those conversations.

Did I mention that EE and ER appear to have towed the rain here with them? While it was fairly dry when they arrived yesterday, it was less so this morning and certainly by the time we finished breakfast at Cafe Alfons it was raining ... which is quite an understatement given it was bucketing down. But at least it will fill the tank again (even though we won't need to rely on it again now the bore pump is back on track)!

After breakfast, we would have done something scenic or touristy with the travellers but it was ... raining ... so they decided it would be good to be in a nice warm, dry living room, perhaps watching some television and maybe catching up with some Knitting rather than imagining what they would have been doing at a caravan park, in the motor home, in the rain. As it turned out, EE had not had a good night last night and ended up having yiesterday's afternoon nap this afternoon. Then ER went for a lie-down and a read; S had a read of the Herald and I played on the computer (because it's been a while since I've been able to do that!).

We had Mouse's Borscht for dinner tonight as EE and ER were out to dinner with EE's brother who lives here on the Coast. They went to the Southport Surf Club - at Main Beach - and had a good time. S and daughter A came in for a coffee when they dropped them back to Latimers ... and luckily they had noticed L's (naughty) dogs on the way down the lane - so they should be okay to sit in the middle of the road for when the next car comes along.

M and Mouse are staying at The Big House for the weekend (for Mother's Day) so EE and ER have the opportunity - which they are taking - to use M's bedroom and the bed down the back so they can both stay inside tonight rather than outside in the mobile home with no power (as there are no 15 amp outlets at Latimers for them to plug in to). It would have been too hard to flip a coin to see who would stay out in the van otherwise. I wouldn't have liked to have called it - so thanks M!

Well, I have seen it now ... Maggie can get out through the cat door! I always thought she couldn't - which surely must be the reason she's always asking one of us to open the front door for her! But no, she is still a little uncertain of the travellers and as we were thinking about going into lockdown - and looking for Tinka to make sure she was in - there was movement at the back door - and Maggie was gone! She did come in eventually though and, after refusing to share the bed with ER, she secreted herself away somewhere for the night - but at least we knew she was in. In the meantime, the cane toads continue to come and there were at least a couple of them frolicking around the front yard this evening.

Friday and friends come to stay

What is it about cane toads at Latimers this week? After I dropped S down to Currumbin this morning, I made my way back here and as I sat working at my desk, I noticed a small cane toad jumping near the wall. As I think about it, I realise that I had heard that cane toads cannot jump backwards and in the National Park near the Border Ranges they have fences with "drifts" of deceased cane toads stacked against them ... because they cannot go backwards. So, the cane toad near the wall wasn't going any where - so it was lucky I had noticed it, and had realised that by using a dust pan and fly swatter, I could airlift the cane toad to safety ... if you call the exposed yard "safety".

The good news is that Ashley did come back to hook all the electrics up and it appears that the bore pump is up and working again. This is actually great news because it has been months since we've been off tank water. Watch out washing! And I guess this also means that showers will definitely not cease. But it's actually good because we will have a bit more of a demand on the water - since EE and ER have arrived to stay at Latimers for a few days on their great "mobile home adventure". They've been on the road for the last three weeks - the last week of that they've had rain ... and it hasn't been as welcome as it would have been here (well, before Thursday because it wouldn't have been fun if it had rained while the trenching was happening).

EE and ER arrived just before lunch. The mobile home is big but it's also small. Their "wardrobe" space is the size of two breadboxes! No wonder they've been wearing the same sets of clothes!

We ended up having a late lunch at the Dune Cafe and just as well we were down there because S rang just as we were finishing lunch to let us know she had an early mark and was ready to be collected. Because we were just up the road, she didn't have long to wait. Then she came back to the Cafe for a drink with us before we made our way back to Latimers.

There was no time for naps - and that was a real shame because the one I had in the car while the others were in the supermarket just wasn't nearly long enough. The afternoon was fairly full and finally, while ER and I did iPad things, S and EE cooked dinner for us all - lamb steaks and spiced vegetables. It was very, very nice! It looked for a moment as if we might get a barbeque but because in the end we decided it might be too cold and there might be a squadron of mosquitoes just waiting for us to come outside, the Inside Chef graciously agreed to be in charge of the evening meal.

After dinner S, ER and EE settled in to watch the final episode of Last Tango in Halifax (the travellers missed it last week due to poor reception at the caravan park - which turns out to be not an uncommon thing). The amazing aspect of it was not that S had not yet deleted the episode, but when they all sat down, assuming their positions in front of the television, all three of them whipped out knitting! You've never seen such a contented trio!

The only down-side was that we missed out on dinner at Mouse's .... but, treasure that she is, she sent some borscht home for us. Thanks Mouse (and to M for transporting it)!

 

Thursday ... into the trenches!

S was working today so I dropped her off at Currumbin after we'd had some breakfast, arranging to go back at lunchtime to pick her up and take her back to The Pines for some sustenance. In the meantime, I was planning to spend some time at the Library but in the end I never quite made it ... but I was fairly productive in the time, checking out job ads, catching up on some correspondence and getting in a walk around the shopping centre. Then it was back to collect S and we ended up at The Shingle Inn - but not to have their famous waffles (which we haven't had at their Robina outlet either because every time anyone goes there, their waffle machine is broken).

After lunch, I took S back to work and returned to The Pines Shopping Centre where I found a coffee shop and did some more work.

The thing I was most surprised about on the way down to Currumbin was the amount of roadworks and traffic on the way. I know that we used to joke about the amount of roadworks there were on the Gold Coast when we first arrived, but there just appear to be more all the time. Yes, the business of the Gold Coast still is Road Works.

When we arrived back at Latimers this afternoon, The Plumber and The Trencher were still here. It was Bore Pump Day and they had been at it since early this morning; actually the "they" at that point was Ashley and The Trencher - but Ashley had been in and out of the trench so many times doing the electrics that in the end he went home exhausted ... obviously a man who throws himself into his work! It was a major job and it's good that it's under way. Ashley will need to come back tomorrow to hook everything up and test it - and hopefully it will work - because if it doesn't I think the whole of Australia will hear the disappointment.

I learned something at CSP tonight - besides the fact that it's so easy for the dealer to take your stake (I learnt that last week) - when a card in the deck is marked - either with a mark or a bend or other identifer - the game is stopped and the deck is replaced. That takes a while - because the pit boss has to be called, they make a call to "somewhere", and then a new deck is delivered (the old one removed) and shuffled. It was funny because when we arrived at the table, it was new decks in play - and it was on the third hand - the first hand another player joined in - that the dealer noticed that the Ace of Hearts was bent on one corner. The dealer all but insinuated that the new player had done the marking - and it was only after the same thing had happened with cards that hadn't been dealt to the players that the dealer realised there was a problem with the shoe. So, we were told it would take a while for the problem to be fixed ... at which point we walked away and went down to the other table - and watched for a little while before a seat actually opened up - and M took it ... but she didn't make her fortune this time.

By the time M and I arrived back at Latimers tonight, and it wasn't that late, S had already taken herself off to bed - so we were very, very quiet ... M went off to bed and I went off down the back to do some writing and downloading and ended up staying up far too late. Again.

There was no need to shepherd cane toads out of the house today but I did note there were two small ones in the outside toilet this morning. At first I thought I had stepped on one but they were both well (and happy?) when they took refuge under the shoe rack. I left them there but will need to check tomorrow to make sure they have relocated!

 

Wednesday - out and about

There's nothing like trekking up the highway with the last of the morning's Brisbane commuters - but luckily I wasn't going all the way to the Queensland capital - I took the Ormeau exit and met with Jo for breakfast at our usual cafe. I had learnt from her ordering last time and had something not on the menu - simple bacon and eggs and coffee - which cost me a fraction of last's week Special - any difference to the menu item seemed to make it more expensive - I suppose variations do make it more labour intensive and you could justify the higher tariffs but I'm not letting them off so easily - but ordering with/like a local did seem to do the trick. And it was good although next time I'll try the full-strength coffee. All seems to be going along "okay" in J’s world although there domappear to be some hiccups with K's granddaughter, Ca, who moved in with them a while ago ... and the issues seems to be between K and Ca - he says she's not behaving like an adult, and she, the teenager, says she can't get anything right for him. J is doing her own special brand of intervention and hopefully that will produce a win-win!

After breakfast, it was back down the highway for an (impromptu) meet with the girls and to go to Bingo at the Southport RSL Club. It has been a while, and once I go back to work, the chances are I won't be able to make Wednesday 11am "Eyes Down". It was fun though - and An went today so it was good to see M shepherding yet another novice through the pecularities of Pet (Machine) Bingo!

Next was a Daniel Stewart lunch - always very nice - before we went back to the Club to sit at poker machines with our membership cards activated waiting/hoping for our names to be called - and to be given the opportunity to answer a trivia question (the same trivia questions from Mnday night) for $40 cash. Our names weren't called this week but depending on what I'm doing next week, I might front up again for the full session ... because it would be a real shame to let good Trivia knowledge go to waste.

Then, finally we were off home, but only for a short stay as S did some work "stuff" and had a nap before it was time for Aqua. In the end, S decided not to go -and M didn't go either - she was off to a forum at The Big House to talk about levels of satisfaction (hmmm -or should that have been "dissatisfaction") - and they did give them something to eat and drink even if the level of commitment to hearing what the assembled folk had to say was less than convincing. Ah well, I guess you can afford to be less than engaged with stakeholders if you run a relative monopoly!

S and I met M afterwards for dinner at Vivo. It was Specials night there ... you have a choice of one of eight dishes for $ 15. I had the Mushroom Risotto (very nice), S had the antipasto (which she said was a bad choice) and M shared her garlic pizza (this was a good choice). The girls also had dessert while I had a coffee - lemon souffle and a fancilly-named donuts to dunk in chocolate sauce.

Meanwhile, back at Latimers, after everyone had gone to bed, I made sure the cats were in, and that two small cane toads who really wanted to stay inside were, in fact, ushered out!

Tuesday and coffee

S and I met Je at Ashmore Plaza (my first time there) to help with her technical problem. It looks like we sorted it out but we won't know for sure until she runs through her presentation and sees if there's a problem. We had coffee at a little cafe there and the waitperson was very engaging ... at first she inadvertently short changed me, then when she delivered S's order she told me mine would be another hour, and then when we were fiddling with the music for Je's presentation and listening to Chariots of Fire, she slow-mo'd over to the table with Je's order. It must be getting harder to get customers if you have to do coffee and a show now ... but we appreciated the effort!

Jungle John came - pruned the Bohemia tree ... and did a much better job than we have been able to (thanks to electric tools and long handles) ... so much so that you can see all the way down the back to the pump house now! It certainly makes Latimers seem just that bit bigger!

D also came but couldn't finish the mowing because the heavens opened and the rain bucketed down at Latimers. It missed Ashmore completely! But he did manage to do some edging and weed control so that's a good thing.

And - what's this, is this the first real sign of Autumn? We know it's starting to get cooler now... Tinka has taken up a spot on Lars' bonnet!

Monday and Magpie Larks

It was a good crowd again at Trivia tonight - it seems we have picked up a few more teams and they're eager to give us a run for our money. We did manage to be on the Podium tonight - second - but we did come equal first in the first half - but managed to get the tie-break question wrong. (For future reference: The Spanish War started in 1936.) We did manage to win a Meat Tray though and luckily we remembered to collect it on the way out of the Club.

Meanwhile, elsewhere on the Coast, M met up with Mi and the others at The Big House for dinner at Vivo. FI was going to meet up with them post-Trivia but had thought better of it after he left us and he went home instead. Home seemed like the place a few folk wanted to be last night - including M (and S) but the only one who did manage not to go out was Mouse. "She had the right idea" M assured us.

The person doing manure patrol in Hermes' paddock yesterday commented on two lots of Latimers' birdlife - the cockatoos who had attacked the lemon tree (or was that Ka on the phone when she rang to change her day?) and the Plovers nesting in Hermes' yard and not letting anyone come near. Of course, that's not the only birdlife around here at the moment. As I sat out the back today while S and M were off at Aqua (it was far too nice to be working inside under artificial light and what good is it being between jobs if you can't take time out(side)) when a magpie lark came and perched on the clothes drying rack - S and M had already been to the Laundromat this morning (only to wash) and I was supervising its drying aka making sure I was on hand to bring it in in case it started raining - but back to the bird, who spent a fair amount of time with me and didn't seem at all frightened or concerned by the human presence. It even stayed there while I went to get the camera so I could take a photograph to show the girls ... but I really needn't have bothered because he was still there when they arrived back from Aqua (another good session!).

M watched an episode of "Person of Interest" out the back while S had a nap and I did some Samagrams checking (still unwilling to work inside!). As we sat there, the magpie lark came back and M (softie that she is) went and got it some mince which it gobbled down quite quickly. I think it enjoyed it so much, it would have licked its lips if it had any. And then we realised there was another one ... and another one. It will be interesting tonsee if they come back tomorrow.

"Hello ... Technical Support." Je is planning to put a video of older people exercising (to a stirring piece of music) into a presentation she's giving next week - but, she and son L are having some technical difficulties. We're hoping to sort it out but to do that she will need to have a copy of the file in a workable format. I've sent her instructions overnight so hopefully we'll be okay to meet up tomorrow while she's on the Coast and fix the problem.

Still on video ... some time ago, I saw a video clip of a person folding a t-shirt in a couple of seconds. This seemed like a reasonable skill to have so 1 "youtubed" it and had a go. Wow... wow... and wow again! It wasn't perfect (yet) but it is actually much better and faster than almost any of my previous t-shirt folding attempts ... ever! So buoyed by that new learning am 1 that I may soon approach the Fushigi Ball and attempt contact juggling - outside, on the grass, of course! Having dropped one on the floor previously, I know it's not good for either the ball or the floor although the instructions do say that in that competition the Fushigi Ball would definitely win! Ah that such a thing of beauty could wreak such destruction and damage!

 

Sunday and the Food Festival

It's good to know that we can still make it to the Markets (almost) on time. We were second today, after Mouse, and we chose tables in the main area of the Food Court because we weren't planning to be there an hour after packing up time today - especially since the Markets are on their Winter hours (7 am - 12 pm). It was just as well too because the book people were there today and they started packing up quite early - and taking their vehicle through the space where we would normally have been set up.

There were a few of us there today including Mi's sister. It did look as though Fl was going to be a no-show when he hadn't shown up by 10 (coffee time) but he and Mi's sister's husband turned up later - they'd been off to the beach to do "training". Ah well, we managed to get coffee without him - although, to be fair, the order was wrong when it arrived - but at least we scored a free coffee because of the mistake.

We were away from the Markets just after 12 - I was fairly surprised by that because I thought it was going to be much later. So it was still quite early by the time we arrived at the International Food Festival at the local Mosque. It's a yearly event, well, has been for the last five years or so, and it was fantastic. As soon as I arrived Ma and Em found me - I was on the phone at the time trying to find S who I'd dropped off and then gone and parked Lars.

There were food stalls from a number of different nations and the ones we tried - Bosnian - were just wonderful. There was fare from Malaysia, Egypt, Indonesia and (?) Australia to name a few, as well as entertainment including singing and dancing. To support the local community, as well as some not so local, there were various stalls (snow cones) and activities including an auction of donated goods including clothes, artwork and a motorbike. There were lots of people at the event, many in traditional dress, and all having a great time; and games stalls for the children - and a stall selling bubble-makers which looked like great fun!

It looked as though it would rain today and it was spitting a little as we left the Mosque but it didn't get to be any more than that - which was why S ended up having to water her plants this afternoon rather than having them rained on. Pearl, the dog who loves hose play, didn't go out to help S - even though, perhaps unwisely, I tried to encourage her to.

Meanwhile, Tinka and Maggie, have been comfortably relaxing for most of the afternoon and evening and when Maggie insisted on going out a little while ago, she gave her word that she would come back in when called. Time to see if she meant it!

Saturday

Just as S's alarm started sounding this morning she started screaming... she had a cramp in her leg and as I tried to massage it away (alas, fairly unsuccessfully) M fetched a magnesium tablet for S to chew on ... that's supposed to make the cramp go away - and it did. As it turned out, as S told me later, when M was trying to get her to chew the magnesium, she thought M was trying to give her Tinka's insulin shot ... S obviously wasn't totally awake yet.

In the end, S didn't go Deep Water Running but M did take herself off. Hopefully the pool is heated now because by all reports (those who went last week), it's starting to get chilly in there.

Breakfast this morning was at Cafe Alfons on Chevron Island. We haven't been there before but lots of other people have - as evidenced by it being full every time anyone drives past. And now we know why ... it wasn't bad at all. I'd definitely go back although next time I won't ask for half-strength coffee. I would have the classic breakfast again - that's if I didn't try something else because everything on the menu looked great - on paper and when the others ordered them; we were six - S, M, Sy, An, Mouse and I - so there was a good variety of dishes on the table.

Afterwards I took S to Spotlight so she could get some more knitting needles (and yarn) since one of them didn't make it back from the Sunshine Coast. Hopefully it's not hiding in Je's car, or anywhere else, waiting to ambush someone.

Then it was home again where I finally made it back onto ROM and managed to mow most of the yard before it got too dark. It was great to be mowing again and while I'm not as good at getting into the edges as M is, I was fairly happy with the job - but not as happy as the birds who swooped onto the lawn to harvest the newly-exposed bug life. Dinner!

We had a quiet night in - as did M ... and it turned into television night with all of us watching something different - S was watching "Clean Houses"; M "Person of Interest", and me "Perception". Thank goodness for iPads! Tink wanted to get in on the act too but she had to wait until everyone else was in bed before she could wrest control of the remote.