Daylesford Autumn Dispatch - Sunday, 27th April 2014

Dear Friends, we enjoyed a wonderful Easter Sunday and hope yours was as good. Breakfast was fun with Gail & Terry, Michael, Barbara & us sharing stories, while Bilbo waited patiently for his toast. We came home to do a few chores, then set off to Trentham to see their Easter Art & Craft Show in the Mechanics Institute. It was a delightful exhibition, well priced with plenty of variety and lots of sales. Afterwards we strolled up and down High Street and Wes pointed out Kirk’s favourite haunt, Chaplins. I looked in the window and the first person I spotted was Bob White, so we joined him for a cuppa until his friends, John & Kev from Maryborough arrived.

Wes had invited Barbara & Michael to join us to watch the Carlton & Western Bulldogs game, so we lit the fire, he prepared macaroni cheese and we enjoyed a bottle of Passing Clouds Graeme’s blend Shiraz, followed by an equally good Cofield Sangiovese Shiraz...and the Blues won, which was a big relief to the Carlton supporters. Wes had decided not to go, so Ben Lazzaro used our seats and I bet he was pleased he was there, although injuries to Judd, Curnow and Bell soured the victory somewhat.

Lovely photo of the Hoolihan clan on Easter Sunday in Torksey Lock – Archie, Michael, Kelly, Jeff, Kev, Leigh & Simon

On Easter Monday we decided to play golf early and were surprised to see a few cars there at 7.15 when we arrived. We teed off at the 1^st hole and realised the group of three in front of us were in no hurry, so cut across to the 10^th and then played the back 8. Wes played some of the best golf I have seen him play in quite a while and had a birdie & a par as well as a couple of bogeys. I got a bogey and a few double-bogeys, so we were both very content with our morning.

We met up with Lovely & Malcolm for lunch at the Victoria Hotel, Woodend, where we had the best table in front of the fire and enjoyed fine Knights Granite Hills Wines and very pleasant meals while we chatted about everything under the sun. We arrived back here in time to settle in front of the TV and enjoy the Geelong/Hawthorn clash at the MCG with a crowd of 80,000+ adding to the atmosphere. It was a classic game between these two sides and just as everyone thought the Hawks would finish the better, the Cats found a second wind and ran away with the game.

We woke to pouring rain on Tuesday and a very welcome sound it was indeed. Wes gave Bilbo his bone and went back to sleep and then enjoyed a rare late start to the day with Hot Cross buns and lavender tea served on a tray in bed to him. I had to get tickets for the Collingwood/Adelaide match at the Adelaide Oval, so wanted to be sure I was ready, and sitting at my computer, for the 9am release of the tickets. Of course, it was 9am South Australian time, which added to the stress levels and when 9.30 finally arrived, contrary to advertising, it was only Adelaide members who could buy tickets. I sent messages to Ticketek and they advised I could buy tickets the next morning instead.

The rest of the day was spent by me updating my Contacts list and trying to get e-Wallet and my printer working perfectly on my new computer. Wes in the meantime spent the day finding glorious accommodation options in Scotland and I think our trip is just about all booked. We are opting for long stays everywhere and will get a car after Edinburgh. Wes cooked a brilliant lunch of fish with anchovy sauce sitting on a bed of tomatoes and peas....so good we can’t wait to have it again.

This lovely photo of Emily Knox and her boyfriend Alan was taken in Glasgow where they spent Easter

On Wednesday we were up bright and early again, Wes to walk Bilbo, and me to continue to update my computer. At 9.30am I selected 3 tickets for the Adelaide game and just as I triumphantly announced to Wes that we had them, the computer said NO! After another false alarm, I finally was successful and raced off to Mah Jong to join Dot, Gail & Valerie for the first time in quite a while that we four were all together. We had a fun morning and the time flew by. Valerie seemed to get Mah Jongs more easily than the rest of us. Wes contacted me during the morning to say that John Scarffe had turned up out of the blue to fix the skylight and hole in the ceiling, much to Sandra’s horror, as she had just cleaned everywhere he wanted to be.

That afternoon we visited our friends, Nick & Lindsay, who are heading to the UK in about 10 days’ time to loan them our Tom Tom, which we loaded with UK maps last year. They were delighted with it and will find travelling around much easier than only using maps.

On Thursday we had a power surge just as Wes and Bilbo left for their walk. It turned on the bedroom light for some reason, so I got up and decided to wash the cars before I had my shower. Then I watered the veggie patch, which just about guaranteed that we would get some light rain.

While Wes was gardening (shifting a maple from the front) I sorted out two more issues with my computer and am starting to feel much more like I am in charge instead of it. We picked up a DVD attachment, as there isn’t one with this new slimline HP model and you can’t download programmes without it!

Friday was ANZAC Day and I joined Wes and Bilbo on their early walk, before we deviated to the Cenotaph for the Dawn Service. This was a lovely event – wonderful speeches by the Secondary School Co-Captains, and a spine-chilling rendition of And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda by Sallie Harvey. Wes had let me know the day before that he would be doing Barbara’s care this morning so that he could take her to the lovely Eganstown 9am service and then the Daylesford Parade at 10.30am. We had to leave the Dawn Service the minute it finished which meant we arrived back only 2 minutes late for Barbara.

Meanwhile I spent some time on the computer yet again, and then set off to the MCG for the 20^th Annual ANZAC Day Collingwood vs Essendon game. It was a wonderful game with Essendon getting the jump on us early, but our midfield getting on top in the second quarter, which allowed us to run out winners in front of 91,000+. I am lucky enough to have been to every one of these 20 games and enjoyed this one with David Lazzaro.

When I arrived home, Wes had cooked a very yummy prawn risotto to celebrate and had the replay ready to go. Later that night Bilbo forgot himself and leapt onto our bed as though there weren’t already two of us taking up most of the bed. He had to be sternly persuaded to get off and resume his usual position by the side of the bed.

Yesterday I joined Wes and Bilbo on the early morning walk, and then did a big shop at Coles, before stocking up on Jameson’s whisky as I didn’t think Wes could survive the Carlton game without a whisky or two. He had worked very hard in the garden, putting the lemon and lime trees under cover for Winter, as well as spreading manure and weeding.

Lovely and I at the Victoria Hotel, Woodend on Easter Sunday.

He had invited Barbara to watch the game with him as she is waiting for her Foxtel to be repaired and cooked them both yummy chicken with vegetables. I enjoyed leftover prawn risotto and much to everyone’s surprise, just when it looked as though the Eagles had a very close game in the bag, Carlton stepped up a gear and won in an exciting finish.

Today we have decided to forgo our usual Breakfast as there were only going to be four of us and Wes and I are off to lunch at Nick & Robyn’s at midday. As well, we are expecting John Scarffe sometime this morning to finish off mending the hole in the kitchen ceiling; Warren needs to take Barbara on a big shop, and Aileen was only coming to breakfast to keep us company as she is busy as well. So Bilbo and I will head off the Sunday Market shortly, which will make him happy. Enjoy your day!

Daylesford Easter Dispatch - Sunday, 20th April, 2014

Dear Friends, last Sunday went well, with a lovely breakfast and good conversations led by Judi, who had enjoyed a busy week, and Aileen who is always entertaining. Both Wes & Glenn chipped in with stories and Gillie, Barbara & I were an appreciative audience. It was such a beautiful day that Wes spent some time in the garden planting more seaside daisies and Flanders poppies, while I pulled out the tomato and zucchini plants that had all reached the end. I turned the tomatoes into a yummy pasta sauce that was made almost entirely from our produce – onions being the only ingredient I didn’t grow. We ate some that night for dinner and it was extra good. Wes spent the rest of the day on Ancestry.com where he keeps finding more cousins and more delightful photos of Viva. Don’t know when or where this week’s shot was taken, but Viva seems to be enjoying the water, and reminds me very much of Leanne.

Bilbo being invisible on our bed

On Monday we played golf – the first time I have played in ages and it was good fun. We had enough satisfactory shots to make us want to come back, but it was very cold at 7.30am. The day improved as it wore on, which was good as we had guests for lunch – David Castles, his wife, Sandy, and their 14-year old son Simon, as well as their dog, Bam Bam.

David Castles as Jesus and Robert Preston as Superman, being admired by Barb Jordon at Wes’s 30^th birthday party

Bilbo was delighted with our visitors, especially Simon, who knew exactly what to do to make a lab happy. We enjoyed meeting Sandy for the first time and listening to David’s stories of his life since we lost touch many years ago. Wes had made his fish pie and a roast chook dish in case Simon didn’t like fish. Simon had eaten a pizza for breakfast so wasn’t hungry, but did get through a piece of the chook. Simon was keen to get to the Mill Markets & Brick Lane (once we told him about it), so left us adults to eat cheese together, while he explored. He collects cut-throat razors and their accoutrements.

That evening, after a rest, Wes took Barbara to the local ALP meeting at the Daylesford Hotel, and David turned up there, as promised. Wes arrived back home at 7.50pm just in time to have his Skype call with Terry and Peter. Needless to say he was in bed shortly afterwards and slept through the walk the next morning, as did Bilbo.

I went off to gym and the Post Office, and arrived home to discover Wes had misplaced the cradle of our portable phone when he answered it in a hurry. So we searched high and low, shifted everything, vacuumed everywhere and still no sign of it. Eventually we gave up and I stood looking at the cradle wondering what shape the missing piece could be. Suddenly I realised that Wes had replaced it upside down and when I inverted it the cradle magically reappeared.

My new computer arrived at Jenkin & Thomas, so we collected it and Wes very kindly offered to install it all for me. I stayed well clear of the study and that was a very good thing as Wes was unable to find the DVD insertion. Eventually he rang John Jenkin and discovered there isn’t one on this new slimline model, so we are borrowing Tim’s until we have downloaded everything that is on disc.

On Wednesday, there was no Mah Jong as both Dot & Gail were busy, so I spent some time getting used to my computer until Sandra had finished cleaning.  Then I went back to bed to try and shake off a fast-acting head cold. Wes took Barbara to Ballarat for an outing and they enjoyed the Scottish Exhibition at the Art Gallery there. I spent the afternoon watching Lewis, the spinoff from Morse, and am quite in love with Laurence Fox and his character as Lewis’s offsider.

We received sad news last week that our friend, Pierre Eychart, has died, apparently last November. We still harboured hopes of catching up with him again after finding that he was still painting and exhibiting in Paris. However, we have missed our chance, and we can’t find a trace of his former wife, our very dear friend, Vivienne, anywhere at all.

Gabby & her son, Fraser, on his 15^th birthday in New York this week

On Thursday I decided not to go to gym, as I was still fighting the head cold,  but had to get up as I had a haircut appointment with Morgan at Spice, and I didn’t want to miss that. When I arrived back home I was sitting quietly in the lounge reading The Age, when I heard a soft falling sound and discovered that the skylight covering in the main bathroom had subsided gently onto the basin, bath & tiles, covering everywhere in a fine layer of plaster and broken perspex. I showed Wes the damage, cleaned it all up and then thought it would be a good idea if he climbed the ladder and removed the rest that was hanging down looking likely to fall at any moment. He did so and covered us both in plaster dust in the process. So I cleaned everywhere again while he tried to find a handyperson. Eventually John Scarffe was contacted and he visited, declared that everything would be OK for a fortnight or so while he and Bronwen are away, and promised to fix the skylight, the ceiling fan and the hole in the kitchen ceiling on his return. Wes took advantage of being on the roof to clean as much of the guttering as he could reach.

Good Friday is our favourite day of the year where we go for a long walk together, then lock ourselves away and light a fire. This year we took Bilbo from Tipperary Springs to Bryce’s Flat and back – a 7km 2-hour walk that we all enjoyed. Back home we lit the fire and ate Hot Cross Buns and spent a very pleasant quiet day together. I got on with my knitting while Wes worked on our Scottish trip and Bilbo did some serious snoring.

On Saturday we were all up very early – Wes and Bilbo to do their normal Lake Daylesford walk, and me to do the ironing and transfer my Contacts list into the computer. At 9am we went to Gracenotes Cafe for a yummy breakfast, which we thought would obviate any need for me to buy lunch at the MCG. And it worked! I was absolutely delighted with the Collingwood team, haven’t seen them play so well in quite a while. It must have been very disappointing for the North supporters who would have gone to the match expecting to win after their recent good form. I arrived back home to another open fire, a yummy prawn risotto and a very strong G&T – thanks Wes, just what I needed.

This morning I am off to Coles first, then the Sunday Market, before we join 4 others at breakfast. Then we are hoping to visit Trentham to see their Easter Art & Craft Show and perhaps catch up with Bob White, before returning home for a quiet afternoon watching the footy. Let’s hope the Blues can notch up a win for all their supporters, especially Wes who is very disappointed with their lack of endeavour so far.

Happy Easter – I hope the Easter Bilby has remembered you kindly!

Daylesford Autumn Dispatch - Sunday, 13th April 2014

Dear Friends, on Friday morning my computer died, so I am sending this on our laptop in the hope that it will reach you all safely. I was about to drive to Melbourne, so Wes undertook to replace the computer and should arrive midweek. I suspect that our frequent power blackouts have contributed to its demise, but fortunately Wes’s computer is OK. We had been resisting Windows 8, but now we can’t avoid it.

Today Bilbo & I are off to do shopping at Coles, then the Sunday Market, before heading to breakfast at The Food Gallery. I have woken with more energy than I had yesterday, and hope to get a little more done today.

I last wrote on Tuesday, when we were busy catching up on the garden, the washing & the house, as well as making sure that Bilbo was OK after his visit to Eureka Kennels. We are now quite convinced that Bilbo is much better than before he went, and is more accepting of his life as a single pet.

We woke to more glorious rain on Wednesday and when Mah Jong was cancelled, I decided to spend my time catching up on paperwork, emails and phone calls. Wes worked in the garden in his Drizabone and gumboots before spending a few hours with Barbara. They had lunch together, and then went to a specialty wound clinic run by Springs Medical Centre before solving a few issues that had appeared while we were away in Melbourne.

On Thursday we celebrated 48 years since the day we met at St Therese’s Church Hall dance on Easter Sunday night. We drove to Newbury to see the property Wes’s cousin, Glenn Testro, has bought and will be moving into shortly. He is about 5 minutes out of Trentham, which we think he will love. We had decided to have lunch in Trentham ourselves and tried out the newest eatery there – The Plough @ Trentham in the old Trentham Hotel. We have been to The Plough at Myrniong several times and really enjoyed it, and this is similarly good. Our young waiter assured us that he is a junior partner in the business and thrilled with his career choice. We were pleasantly surprised to see it was already being well-patronised, especially with Annie Smithers at Du Fernier no longer offering lunch on Thursdays.

Lovely photo of Wes at the Plough with his 36-hour slow cooked beef

The next morning I packed for an overnight stay with Danny and started my drive to visit Leanne in Strathmore. When I reached Trentham I realised that I didn’t have Danny’s front door key and as he would be out when I arrived, that I couldn’t do much without it! Back home I drove collected the key and set off again in the rain. Leanne & I spent a good few hours together before I headed to Northcote. As I pulled up outside Danny’s place, I discovered his car was parked there and he was at home.

We had a cup of tea together, and then Danny left for drinks at Beacon Cove. He had hoped to get to the footy, but the friend who invited him decided he didn’t want to go as he thought Richmond would lose. I caught the train into town and saw The Grand Budapest Hotel at The Kino. I found the film very disappointing in spite of Ralph Fiennes, who is a favourite of mine. There were some funny moments but we had seen them all in the trailer and the film seemed a bit pointless and directionless to me. I think the audience was evenly divided between those who liked it and those who, like me, were underwhelmed.

When I got to the MCG I met up with David Lazzaro and we had a drink and chat before the game, then sat back and enjoyed Collingwood’s fairly easy win over Richmond. It was good to see the whole team play well and to see some improvement in the younger players in particular.

I left about 10 minutes before the end, in the hope I would catch an earlier train to Northcote and miss the crowd crush. I just missed my train and had a 30 minute wait for the next by which time the station was jam-packed and blocked back up to the bridge. There was no parking around the MCG because of the rain, so the normal train service couldn’t cope with the extra passengers. People got very agitated, upset and abusive and it was a most unpleasant experience. I was very relieved to get home, where Danny & I had a celebratory drink together.

Yesterday morning, we had an early breakfast at the new Red Door Corner Store café in Northcote, that had been highly recommended. We enjoyed our food and pots of tea, at but didn’t feel we were their target audience at all. Your first impression is so important and as we walked in the door at 7.59am the barista glared at us and said you’re early, but you might as well sit down. All the outside tables were in position, the waitresses were ready, the water was boiling & the chef was ready to go, but we were 60 seconds early!

I drove back here to wish Wes good luck before he and Barbara drove to the MCG in the hope that Carlton would beat Melbourne. Sadly that wasn’t to be – Melbourne looked much more determined and seem to be able to stick to their game plan at last, whereas the Carlton players looked hesitant and scared of making mistakes. As Wes said, it could be a very long year for the Blues.

Gabby & Fraser Gibson having an early birthday celebration in New York.

Our dear friend, David Knox, has broken his collar-bone in a surfing mishap – we are thinking of him and hope he is coping with the awful pain, and the forced inactivity of the next 6 weeks or so as he recovers.

I hope to be back to normal next Sunday, but just in case I am not, I’ll wish you a very Happy Easter now. 

Daylesford Autumn Dispatch - Tuesday, 8th April 2014

Dear Friends, when I left you last Monday I was off to spend time with Judi. We met at the Food Gallery, and spent a lovely hour or so catching up on each other’s news. Bilbo enjoyed all the attention he received sitting at the outside table and the funniest moment occurred when he spotted a wheelchair coming up the footpath. He got very excited and strained to the end of his leash in anticipation. When the wheelchair arrived and he realised it wasn’t Barbara, he turned his back, just as the delighted old man leant over to pat him!

Wes spent the day with Leanne as they had an appointment at Fawkner Cemetery to choose the headstone for Viva’s grave. That went very well and they celebrated by having coffee at the Mediterranean Wholesalers in Sydney Road, Brunswick. Wes had hoped to visit Joan Testro before coming home but it wasn’t convenient, so he arrived back at a reasonable hour very pleased with his day.

On Tuesday we had a good session at gym and then I drove to Leitches Creek to pick up Janine Hawker and take her to the Glenlyon General Store, where we sat at a quiet table with pots of tea and chatted for 90 minutes or so. Janine’s husband, David, isn’t well enough to live at home and has moved into Lumeah Lodge, the high care area of the Daylesford Hospital. That afternoon Nick Massaro came to give me a massage, which was very welcome indeed.

The promised rain sprinkled a bit on Wednesday, but not enough to prevent the early morning walk or Mah Jong with Dot & Gail. Wes gardened before going over to spend time with Barbara. She hasn’t been very well since her return from holidays, so he cooked her lunch and took her to the doctor. We had invited Glenn Mack for a drink at 5pm, which was lovely but interfered with packing plans – anything that stops packing is to be encouraged.

 

Front & side views of our new Firescreen – we ordered it last September as our Christmas present to each other & it finally arrived this week!

We got up bright and early on Thursday for our trip to Melbourne and drove Bilbo to Eureka Kennels, his first visit on his own. Then off to Ballan Station where we parked the car and caught the train to Spencer Street. We had a good trip, checked into Rydge’s Hotel in Exhibition Street and headed for Westlake for a yum cha lunch. Afterwards we walked to the Ian Potter Centre, where we saw some of the Melbourne Now Exhibition. After a rest back at the hotel, we went to the Kino to see the wonderful film, Le Weekend.

On Friday we tried very hard to eat congee for breakfast, but had no luck, so ended up at the beautiful Hopetoun Tearooms in the Block Arcade. Wes had crepes and I enjoyed raisin toast with pots of tea. Then off to the State Library, where we enjoyed a wonderful series of 18^th century Roman etchings by Piranesi, and got halfway through the Victoria Exhibition, which is a wonderful pictorial record of Victoria as a state starting in 1851 when we got ‘freedom’ from NSW. Back to our hotel to change for lunch at the European. And what a stunning lunch it was – we were joined by Lovely & Malcolm, Ian & Robyn, Danny, Judi & Michael. We have breakfast there very often, but rarely lunch and the food and wine lived up to all our expectations. The company was magic and before we realised, it was nearly 4pm and time to go.

Wes looking very resplendent on our way to lunch

On Saturday we ended up back at the European for a yummy breakfast and catch up with Terry Borg. Afterwards we walked through the Botanical Gardens, visited The Shrine in time for the noonday ceremony and saw The Beatles Exhibition at the Arts Centre. After a rest, we headed back to the Kino, where we enjoyed a film version of Private Lives starring Anna Chancellor & Toby Stephens. The Age gave it one star, which amazes me, as we think it was probably the finest version we have seen. It was a wonderful art deco set, the acting was superb and we were treated to a great theatre experience in more comfort than the Gielgud Theatre would have offered.  While we were waiting to get in I recognised Gillie’s friend, Yvonne, who was also waiting, and we caught up by sitting next to each other in the back row. She is also Seona Farrelly’s aunt and we know Seona through David Lazzaro, who is one of her best friends.

That night we headed off to the MCG where we met up with David Lazzaro for a drink before the game. It was much closer than I expected and there were plenty of highlights to compensate for our narrow loss to the Cats. We did enjoy being able to walk out of the G and back to our hotel instead of joining the queues for the trains.

We had a slow start on Sunday as we were meeting Marilyn & Robert Preston at 10am at Smith & Daughters, the brainchild of Maureen (Mo) Wyse and her partner Shannon Martinez. Mo is engaged to Callum Preston, who has worked so hard to help them realise their dream of a funky vegan restaurant at 175 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy. We loved the whole thing – glorious fit out of an old bluestone building, fabulous juices and food, attentive service and competitive prices. We walked there through Fitzroy, visiting old haunts of Wes’s family including 97 Gore Street, which he remembers visiting.

Karen, Robert, Wes & Marilyn

After brunch and a further stroll around with the Prestons, we separated – Wes to visit Joan Testro, who is in Epworth Hospital following a fall, and me to wander around town. We met up back at our hotel before heading to the Kino yet again to see The Great Beauty, which did not live up to its 4.5 star rating. We were expecting a travelogue of Rome, but instead saw a self-indulgent look at Roman life through the eyes of a 65-year-old.

From there we walked to the MCG in time for the Carlton & Essendon game. Sadly Carlton was completely outplayed from the first bounce of the ball, so we left just before half-time and caught a tram back to the hotel, where we checked the scores and abandoned the Blues to their fate.

Yesterday we checked out in time to catch the 11.08 train to Ballan and were right on time to pick up Bilbo, who had been bathed and was being dried as we pulled up at Eureka Kennels. He was pleased to see us, but had obviously coped very well with his little holiday. By the look of him, he received plenty of treats from Andrew & Annette to compensate for being on his own!

It was lovely to come home but it took me all afternoon to unpack and wash & dry clothes. Wes cooked a lovely pasta lunch, mostly using produce from our garden – zucchini, parsley, chilies and tomatoes. Around 7pm I realised I was exhausted, so went to bed and Wes wasn’t too far behind after his 8pm Skype call with Terry & Peter.

Today Wes and Bilbo had a long walk early, then we went to gym and I spent the next 3 hours being pampered by Emma at EKO. I arrived back home to Wes’s famous and very yummy fish pie and now a quiet afternoon beckons, with gentle soaking rain as a background.

Wes at the State Library