Saturday 1 February

Poor Pearl was sick this morning - just a little ... but it showed that my gag reflex is alive and well. By the time Sooz offered to do it, I was already over most of it, and had remembered the advice I heard somewhere ... it's harder to be physically ill if you're smiling. I wonder how people work these things out ... the last thing I feel like doing in the middle of a clean-up like this one, is smile!

Out on the main road, the burnt out BMW is gone - removed sometime over the long weekend we think. I wonder why it took so long for this one to be taken away - and who is responsible for these things. The last burnt out wreck - which we were there to see burn - was gone the very next morning.

There were heaps of roadworks on the drive to Toowoomba - which is good because it is obviously keeping lots of people employed. I enjoyed pointing out pieces of plant and suppliers: we use them ... that's a ...! Alas, I didn't have an answer when she asked how many people it takes to hold up a sholvel as we passed one patch where they had just cut out a section of the old road and about 30 people were in the 100m stretch sweeping, shovelling or just being there.

We stopped at Laidley (The Coffee Club) on the way ... it was a massively long line ... but we had to go there - this is the first chance I've had to use my VIP Club loyalty card and if I don't start using it soon, I'll feel like it's money wasted - even though I only have to buy 5 coffees over the course of the year to pay for it.

Newly-baked bread!

It was great to see the family again, especially Wa who I haven't seen in over a year ... and a lot has happened to him during that time, including a split with his wife of 30 years. The details are a bit tacky - involving his best friend - so we're not going to go into that here. He's good though - rebuilding his life and starting to look forward to the future although you can tell the hurt is still there.

We and Ma hosted a BBQ this evening ... good times! But it wasn't just a BBQ - they had both been trying their hands at baking and Ma had made rolls and a savoury loaf, and We had made a caramel/chocolate pie. She also tried her hand a making butter ... oh wait, that was supposed to be whipped cream. It was certainly a lesson in how quickly cooking can turn on you! Well ... the second time at least ... and by that time there was no more thickened cream left so - saying it would have been way too indulgent to have had it - we made do without cream on top of our pie!