Dear Friends, it was so cold last Sunday that I put coats on
the boys before taking them to the Market and Breakfast. They like wearing
their coats and enjoyed the attention they received. We enjoyed a fun, chatty
morning before coming home to turn up the heaters and relax. Eventually the sun
came out just in time for Wes and Barbara to drive to Williamstown to see A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the
Forum, which was quite entertaining.
Beautiful dogwood
in the front of Maloney Folly
We had hoped to play golf, but slept in and I decided to
make the Christmas Pudding instead….only to discover we had no rum, so off to
remedy that situation before starting the process, as it takes about an hour to
prepare and six hours to cook. Bilbo & Frodo watched with almost the same
attention that Casper used to give me and were very keen to see where the
finished product went at 6pm that night. I had to resort to hanging it in the
guest bedroom away from inquisitive noses.
We have been enjoying the latest New Tricks, with Tamzin Outhwaite as the boss. We liked her very
much in Red Cap, and she seems very
well-placed to bring a change of pace and direction to the show, which also
seems to have a new writer or two. I had declared I would stop watching when
Dennis Waterman left, but I think Tamzin will keep me interested.
As far as reading goes, we’ve both been doing lots of that –
Wes is reading historical novels, recommended mostly by Mary Goodall, that
cover the time of William the Conqueror, and I am reading a motley assortment –
just finished an Arthur Upfield (Bony), in the middle of a Donna Leon (without
Brunetti) and dipping into a Graham Greene autobiography when the mood takes
me. I have also just finished the latest Arnaldur Indridason Black Skies, which I enjoyed very much.
And I discovered that the wonderful Icelandic phone book which so obsessed me
that we went to Iceland to see it, uses a red dot to signify no unwanted calls. We’ll have to go back
again!
Danny Wells with
his first catch at Tuki
Wes has spent lots of time in the garden again this week –
he has mapped out a plan for Casper’s grave, which is at the back of the
orchard, and plans to plant lots of red poppies, which will look beautiful. He
has nearly finished his rose and lavender border and is part way through a
seaside daisy and rosemary border – both of these are on pathways, and the rose
garden is right under our noses when we sit in the study looking out. As
always, he gets lots of help from Bilbo and Frodo.
We both had very busy days on Thursday – after golf I
visited my psychologist and accidentally left my Medicare card there. This
wasn’t a worry until the acupuncture doctor in Ballarat was able to see me a
week earlier than expected, so I had to make a quick trip back to Hepburn to collect
the card. In between I delivered Wes and Secundus to Sailors Falls Estate where there was a Men’s Lunch being held. Then lunch with Judi & Michael at Gracenotes, before I drove to Ballarat
in heavy rain to see Paul Ghaie and have laser acupuncture on my left wrist to
relieve tendonitis. Wes was home after a
most enjoyable lunch and we both were pleased to do nothing for the rest of the
evening.
When I was sitting in the waiting room, I was racking my
brain to work out why the receptionist was so familiar, until I realised she
was just like Pauline in Doc Martin.
Everyone in the waiting room was privy to her thoughts and she had us all
engaged and laughing. Patients in this waiting room have so far knitted over
8,000 squares to make rugs and there is a basket with wool and needles should
you be so inclined.
Dawn over 78 Duke
Street
On Friday Wes drove to Kingsbury
Golf Course to play with Danny, Tommy & Bobby. He had to leave at
7.30am to get to Bundoora by 9.30 start and drove through very heavy rain most
of the way. I left 10 minutes later to spend a morning with Viva and give
Leanne a long-overdue morning off. I also drove through very heavy rain, almost
like hail in Woodend and Sunbury and it was even raining in Strathmore when I
arrived. Viva was pleased to see me and I did my usual polishing of furniture
and cleaning to help Leanne, while keeping up supplies of hot coffee to Viva.
Gillie had given me eggs to take, Judi had picked some parsley and I
contributed roses and rosemary from our garden.
It was about 2pm by the time I got home for a late lunch and
rest, missing out on seeing the film, The
Help, at Barcaldine House that afternoon. I had hoped to go, but didn’t
need the pressure of getting back to Daylesford in time. Wes arrived home
around 6pm exhausted from his day of driving and golfing, but did enjoy the
company and banter of the others.
We felt quite rested by yesterday morning and Wes bathed the
boys after walking them, then applied my henna and when he was finished, we sat
down to tea, toast and Saturday’s Age.
I will be so sad when the news part of the weekend Age is no longer a broadsheet. The news seems so much more
important and easier to read in that format, but progress insists that tabloid
is the way to go.
I glanced at the Form Guide and discovered there were 6 or 7
female jockeys engaged for the meeting at Caulfield, so decided to support them
by having some silly bets. I was lucky enough to turn $11 into $30 as enough
longshots saluted or placed. We watched Adam Scott increase his lead in the
Sydney Open in between writing Christmas cards, reading & doing crosswords.
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