Daylesford Spring Dispatch - 30th October 2016

Dear Friends, we started our Sunday with another lovely breakfast – this time with Mary Goodall, who drove here from Bendigo. Bilbo was most indignant to be outside against the wall and completely unable to see in and after Wes posted this photo on Facebook, most of our friends agreed!

Wes regaled us with stories from the 70^th birthday celebration he had attended the night before in honour of Sandy Breen at the Boathouse Daylesford, and Mary was keen to tell us all about her visit to the Bendigo Show the day before.

On Monday, I felt well enough to go to gym and it was dry, so I walked there and met Gillie afterwards for a cuppa at The Food Gallery, where we caught up on each other’s news and saw various friends, including Joe Rozen, Jan & Warren Pengilley & Margot Jordan. Afterwards Gillie dropped me home with some of her eggs & lemons.

Wes had walked Bilbo and spent most of the rest of the morning in the front garden, tackling the weeds and enjoying the profusion of bluebells. We sat on the decking to have our Atlantic salmon with asparagus & green salad, all of which attracted the first flies of the season. That night Wes attended the AGM of the Daylesford Cinema, where the new Committee was installed, promising bigger & better in the year to come.

Wes showed the film, ‘Bridget Jones’ Baby’ to an appreciative audience on Tuesday morning. There were four of us sitting in the back of the cinema, while the front was taken up with Mummies & Babies. Someone had suggested on Facebook that a group go, and there must have been 10-12 Mummies, who all settled in to enjoy a good laugh. The Cinema is perfect for them – they all sat at the front where there was space for prams & pushers, and toddlers could sit in booster seats next to them. It was a most entertaining film, and one that wasn’t in any way ruined by hearing the odd cry in the background.

After croissants for lunch with Wes at The Food Gallery, in the afternoon I went to EKO for my 6-weekly facial, which included a manicure & pedicure as well. It was a most relaxing & indulgent day, except for the very sad news that Lib’s father, Doug Mathews, aged 98, had died peacefully in his sleep overnight. We have known Lib’s parents, Doug & Bell, since 1969, and they were always very generous with their holiday home at Barwon Heads, and with including us in various functions & meals.

Lovely photo of Doug with Lib taken in April 2015

I walked to gym again on Wednesday, while Wes had a very busy morning helping Barbara. He mowed her lawns, filled up her car with petrol and collected mulch for her garden, as well as doing some planting & chatting about various issues. Dot wasn’t well enough for Mah Jong, but I had a pot of Jasmine tea at Muffins & More after my fringe trim. I had hoped to catch up with Glenn Mack, who had buried his oldest sister the day before, but he had a meeting, so we have taken a raincheck.

We had a quiet afternoon after all our busyness and woke up on Thursday morning ready for our visit to Woodend as part of our discovery tours around our local area.

We stopped at a local café, Brahms & Liszt, for a cuppa. It rated no 2 in Trip Advisor. We were a little underwhelmed by the décor, but the service was very friendly and everyone raves about their waffles!

Next stop was the Information Centre, where we were warmly greeted by Dorothy, who provided us with leaflets and suggestions. We were keen to do the Five Mile Creek Walk, which started just near the Info Centre under the old bluestone Woodend Bridge.

The Bridge is easy to find, but you are then in a sort of park or reserve, with absolutely no signage whatsoever and we couldn’t work out where the walk went, so did what we all do, and followed the next people who arrived. The walk is a little disappointing as there is very little signage or history apart from an explanation of the weir on the Nicholas family estate, where the wire on the fences was sourced from the old cable car routes when they were discontinued.

We had decided to try Double 8 Chinese Restaurant for lunch, and were very pleased with our decision. We were the only couple eating in, everyone else ordered and then collected takeaway. Our meals were very yummy and quite filling. The standard was good for a country town, but not quite Little Bourke Street.

Wes checking out the menu – note the Venetian blinds – as long as there are Chinese restaurants, there will always be Venetian blinds!

We collected our car from the Info Centre car park and drove up to the Woodend Cemetery, which is very well signposted and obviously cared for. We arrived about 30 minutes before a funeral, but were able to walk all the way around looking for rellos. We didn’t find any, but we did like the unusual layout, where very few graves are parallel to the fences.

  

Entrance to the cemetery and my favourite grave – the name and dates have been cut into the headstone, which lets the light shine through

On our way out of Woodend, we stopped at the Uniting Church, where Doug Mathews was minister for some years and thought about the happy times we had spent at the home at the back with Tom & Lib, Doug & Bell.

On Friday, after shopping, I drove to Strathmore to spend some time with Leanne. It was a good visit and we enjoyed the warmer weather. Wes had a quiet day at home with Bilbo.

Yesterday, I visited Judi & Michael’s home early, as they were due back last night after 10 days away on holidays. We do this for each other – empty PO Boxes, water plants, check for wind damage, leave some provisions &/or flowers.

This is a big weekend in Daylesford – you may know that for three years (2010-2012), Wes and I ran the Daylesford Rotary Art Show over the Melbourne Cup long weekend. We only stopped because of my chronic fatigue, which prevented me from coping with the long hours & big workload. The Art Show is now part of a bigger picture – Artober, which covers the Hepburn Shire and incorporates Open Studios and more involvement by schools & local Art Galleries.

We went to Brae Studio, owned by friends, Annie Saunders & Doug Wright, who moved here from Buninyong, and previously, Scotland. They have downsized to an architect designed long open plan home, with their studio at the front – perfect for showing visitors without having to open their whole house. We enjoyed their art, especially a large work by Doug, which had been commissioned by their son’s Finnish in-laws, who wanted a reminder of Finland.

Next stop was the Daylesford Rotary Art Show, where over 200 works were on display. As usual, there was a wide range of styles and ability, and we were very taken with some of the paintings by our old favourites – Brian Nash, Roberta Donnelly, Winsome Moffat & Carolyn Marrone. We recognised many of the names exhibiting and could see that some artists had improved on their techniques, while others had tried completely different styles, subjects & even frames.

The afternoon was spent watching Derby Day races from Flemington and having some small flutters in each race. We were lucky enough to pick a few well-priced winners & placegetters & ended the afternoon ahead by $15, which means we have plenty in kitty for the remainder of the Cup Carnival.