Daylesford Winter Dispatch - Sunday, 30th August 2015

Dear Friends, we had a lovely Sunday after I sent the Dispatch last week. Bilbo and I headed to the Market, where everyone stopped to give him a pat and have a chat. We had let the fridge get empty and Yvonne was delighted when I spent $46 restocking fruit and vegetables. I also collected eggs & dog bones and because there was no hurry to get home and unpack in time to get to breakfast at 9am, I did my final visit to Judi and Michael’s home to leave them some eggs, lemons, onions, spuds and garlic.

Wes, Bilbo and I went to ‘Jackie’s on Vincent’ for breakfast around 9.15am where we are already in a rut – I love the omelette with mushrooms & feta, and Wes can’t go past the big bowl of porridge with local honey. David O’Reilly spotted Bilbo sitting out the front, so came in for a chat. Afterwards we drove to Lake Daylesford and set off for the walk to Twin Bridges and back. This is one of our favourite walks and it has been closed for weeks following the high winds that knocked over some very large trees. We met no one and enjoyed listening to the birds and the sound of water in the creek, which is fed from the overflow of the Lake.

In the afternoon, Wes finally had a chance to cheer for the Blues when they managed a good win against the luckless Melbourne Demons. Carlton put on a good team effort and gave all their supporters some heart leading into 2016. I had made minestrone soup, so we enjoyed that with toast for dinner, before heading to bed to watch Australia wrap up the 5^th Test. Sadly for us, rain came, an early lunch was taken, and we were well and truly asleep when Peter Siddle collected the last two wickets.

We were thrilled to wake up to that news and Wes took Bilbo for an early walk around the Lake even though it was quite cold with a chilly wind. I had declared the day one for washing & ironing and did countless loads, as well as cooking special fried rice for lunch. Wes got ham in his and I had bean sprouts with mine. Wes had attended a funeral of an ALP friend, John Knowles, at Eganstown Cemetery, and was pleased to warm up with a hot meal on his return.

Leanne’s cat, Smokey, enjoying his scratching post

It was another cold, wild morning on Tuesday, so all thoughts of a walk were abandoned and we three slept for another hour. Wes went off at 9am to get the Daylesford Cinema warm for the 10am patrons coming to see ‘Mr Holmes’. There were only a handful of us watching the film, and Wes was able to join us. We both loved it very much & especially enjoyed the interplay between Ian McKellan and Milo Parker, the young boy. Afterwards we came home for an encore of minestrone soup. I had hoped to walk Bilbo in the afternoon, but the wind was so cold that I couldn’t easily breathe, so we stayed inside and kept warm instead.

I thought gym was restarting on Wednesday morning, but I was the only one who turned up and it appears that Barry isn’t returning until next week. This gave me some extra time to catch up on emails etc and to work on our trip to Adelaide at the end of November. We had decided on the spur of the moment to get tickets for the first day/night Test in Australia, which will be against the Kiwis. Jane & David Knox are also coming, but only for the first two days. Getting the tickets was the easy part – finding suitable accommodation within walking distance wasn’t quite as easy. However, we have booked an apartment for 5 nights and it is only 1.5kms from the Adelaide Oval. We are going to stay in Dunkeld for two nights on the way over and explore The Grampians, and are planning a visit to the Clare Valley on the way back.

Valerie celebrated her 83^rd birthday yesterday, so after Mah Jong we had a small get-together, with Dot’s husband, John, and Warren, coming in to join us. Dot & John had to go to Ballarat, so were only able to stay for a hot drink, but Warren, Valerie and I had toasted sandwiches, which were warming after the cold morning. Wes had spent his morning helping Barbara, who needed an upgrade to Windows 10 etc.

Valerie with her daughter, Alison, partner, Peter & granddaughter, Jamie-Lee

During the afternoon, I started to feel unwell and retired to bed, where I have been ever since. It seems as though I am having a relapse of the bronchial asthma, exacerbated by a setback with chronic fatigue and bed is the best place to be, especially with a lovely Labrador by my side. Wes has been brilliant as usual, making tasty meals and never complaining about the extra work. On Thursday night, he went to a special showing of the Hermitage Exhibition at the NGV and enjoyed it very much. I was very sorry to miss out.

On Friday morning, he went by train to Collingwood’s ‘Yorkshire Hotel’ to meet up with 20 or so other 1965 St Bernard’s Matriculants and a good time was had by all as they celebrated 50 years since their final year. When he finally arrived home around 7.30pm that night, he was tired but very happy with the success of the function, with the accumulation of stories and photos and with the energy that suggests this could become an annual event.

That night, much to the delight of many Collingwood supporters, we finally got our act back together and played well for an entire game. The big highlight for the Cats was seeing Daniel Menzel, who has been missing for 4 years with knee replacement surgeries. He was their best player and looked fearless as he marked, kicked and tackled with freedom.

Yesterday the Blues were unable to reproduce their winning form and I suspect that many of their players failed their auditions in front of their next coach, Brendan Bolton, who will be very keen to get going and make a difference in that Club. The game of the round was between the Western Bulldogs & North Melbourne, which was tough, exciting match to watch and which was won in great style by the Doggies.

Daylesford Winter Dispatch - Sunday, 23rd August 2015

Dear Friends, it’s been a busy week since I returned to Daylesford on Sunday afternoon, but the wet weather has allowed us a few sleep-ins, which I needed after my Sydney trip with Danny. Most of Monday was spent washing & ironing and getting back into the swing of life here. I had hoped to keep up the walking, but was too tired, so saved that until Tuesday. Not only were daffodils just starting to open up, but also Marjorie Atkinson’s special camellia that she gave us quite a few years ago, had burst into bloom. It was fully-grown when she offered it to us from her former garden and it gives us great pleasure every year.

On Tuesday I went to Coles, where Wendy and Mari were very pleased to see me and asked where I had been – how good is that! After a big shop, I joined 14 others at the Daylesford Cinema to see the film ‘Women He’s Undressed’, which is a beautifully crafted Australian film about a relatively unknown chap, Orry Kelly, from Kiama, who designed costumes for Hollywood films for many years and won three Oscars for his work. We all loved it.

Afterwards Wes and I finally had lunch at ‘Jackie’s on Vincent’, the new café on the site of ‘Gracenotes’. We enjoyed dumplings, special fried rice and jasmine tea and were thrilled to see Lisa greeting her customers by name (including us and we’ve only been there a couple of times before). The open fire was welcoming and it was the perfect spot to talk about the film and catch up on each other’s news.

Thanks Danny for this lovely photo of Jane and me before the footy trying out the front row seats in the Members at the SCG.

In the late afternoon we donned our walking boots and took Bilbo for a walk around Lake Daylesford, where we met a couple of local nurses from Springs Medical Centre and a lone visitor who treats herself to a trip to Daylesford every year, and was hungry for some history of the place.

We were very relieved that James Hird finally resigned from Essendon and hope that his departure, and the impending retirement of Chairman, Paul Little, will help the Club to heal. The past three years have been hell for the players and supporters and so many talented people have left the Club in the wake of the supplements scandal.

Wednesday was a cold, but dry morning, and after a haircut with Lyndal Conroy, I set off to Melbourne, firstly to deliver the contract of sale of Joan’s house to Peter Russo, and more importantly to visit Leanne again for the first time in three weeks.

Beautiful sculpture called ‘Mare & Foal’ in the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney

Leanne had baked an orange cake and I provided a mini Boston Bun, so we were well fed, while we caught up on our news.

Meanwhile, Wes spent the morning gardening and tidying up over at Barbara’s home before driving to Ballarat for an intensive hearing test. I was amazed when he returned with the information that I would have to claim the Medicare rebate on line, as I thought just about everywhere you go these days can do it for you. I was even more amazed when I discovered I couldn’t do it online, but needed to download the Express Medicare App, take a photo of the receipt and handle the claim that way.

We three slept in on Thursday morning, which was wonderful and I only woke when the recycling bins were emptied at 6.30am. It was great to go back to bed with a pot of tea and do the crosswords while my two boys slept on. During the morning, Nick Massaro popped in to fix another of our dining room chairs which was falling apart, and afterwards I went to hear a U3A ‘Interesting Lives’ chat by Maureen Andrew, at the Daylesford Museum. Maureen was battling a cough, but kept us entertained for an hour or so with a potted history of her 

professional time in musicals here and overseas. She started off in ‘Hair’, which we saw in both Sydney (1970) & Melbourne (1971), and nowadays she does cabarets at ‘The Grande’ hotel in Hepburn Springs, where she is a big hit with locals. Her favourite show is ‘Billy Elliot’, which we loved as a stage play as well.

This stunning photo of Tayla Harris (without the words) first appeared in The Age after the Melbourne & Western Bulldogs Women’s teams played a televised curtain raiser to the Men’s game last Sunday. I was flying home and missed it, but many of my friends watched it and said how enjoyable it was. It even out-rated the Adelaide & Essendon AFL game, which was played the day before. It reminds me of the stunning statue of Teddy Whitten in full flight which is outside the MCG.

During the afternoon, which Wes spent on the phone to Foxtel trying to retrieve our free-to-air stations, which had mysteriously disappeared, I took Bilbo for a walk around the Botanic Gardens; before we settled down to watch the 5^th Test at The Oval. We were delighted to see the Aussies reach a century before lunch, and be 3/267 when bad light stopped play.

On Friday, Wes and Bilbo were up bright and early and enjoyed a walk around Lake Daylesford. I headed off to pick some lemons from Bill & Sue’s prolific trees, collect a bag of dry pinecones from Hepburn Springs, and deliver mail & letters to Judi & Michael’s place. Judi & Michael arrive home today after 10 days’ holiday in Canberra and Sydney, which included some time camping. As Judi does when we are away, I have been popping in every two days to water plants and check that everything is OK. I also had some more beanies to deliver to Mell Sappho, who runs ‘Keeping Daylesford Warm’. I’ve had enough of beanies and am moving back to squares today!

We were glued to the footy that night when Port Adelaide got the jump on Hawthorn and somehow managed to stay ahead and beat them by 22 points in a very exciting game. At the same time, the cricket was on, so we were channel hopping.

Yesterday we woke to discover the Poms had unexpectedly capitulated and it looked as though Michael Clarke would get to enforce the follow-on for the first time in his final Test as Captain. I left home at 7.45am to drive to Melbourne for a busy day. Firstly I dropped off a cat scratching post at Strathmore for Smokey as Leanne had been unable to get one, then I drove to the MCG where I had reserved a spot in the undercover car-park. From there I walked into Federation Square and collected my ticket to see ‘David Bowie Is’ at ACMI (the Australian Centre for the Moving Image). What a wonderful exhibition this is with most of David’s costumes, lots and lots of memorabilia, short films, long films and giant projections of live performances.

My favourite costume

I was particularly impressed by the young, enthusiastic staff at ACMI, which I must confess I haven’t visited before, even though it sits next door to the Ian Potter Centre (the Australian Art Gallery of the NGV). As I was leaving David Bowie, I discovered there was another exhibition across the floor, which was entitled ‘Orry Kelly’. So I strolled in there and saw some of his costumes, more footage from films, his three Logies and various other pieces of memorabilia. What a treat!

When I left ACMI, I walked back to the MCG and got a great seat in the back row on the wing in the Balcony area of the MCC. Although it reached 19° in Melbourne, it was jackets and beanies weather in the MCC. As it was early I went for a walk around the top sections of the whole ground, something I can do because I am both an MCC & AFL member. It was fun to watch the staff setting up and to see all the improvements that have been made recently. However, the SCG leaves us for dead when it comes to food choices – there is still very little for a non-meat eater, although I eventually found an egg & lettuce wrap, which was yummy. There was no sign of Loud Gayle and her friend, Heather, in their normal spots.

Clever graphics at the G – this banner used to hang at Victoria Park – the days of banners are long gone but it was great to see it again, briefly, and fluttering in the breeze on the Great Southern Stand

Sadly, the football was most disappointing and almost from the very start, it was obvious that Richmond was the more committed side. I kept hoping the Pies would spring into action, but it wasn’t to be and I left at ¾ time, thus missing Richmond’s 9 goal last quarter. They are looking the goods with the finals three weeks away.

When I arrived back home, it was lovely to be greeted with a big glass of red wine and an early dinner. Wes and Bilbo had enjoyed a day of gardening and cleaning up and we were all tired and in bed by 8pm.

I woke this morning to find that St Kilda, which raced out of the blocks against Geelong, had hung on for a draw, which is a fine effort and that the cricket scores were very exciting, with England on the ropes in their second innings, still 129 runs behind Australia.

Great action shot of Siddle appealing

As I sit here, there is mist everywhere...hopefully it will have lifted by the time Bilbo and I set off for the Sunday Market. Our usual breakfast has been cancelled as there are only 3 of us available and it doesn’t seem fair to the ‘Food Gallery’ to make them run up and down the stairs for 3 customers. So we are planning a walk and perhaps brunch afterwards, before a quiet day, seeing if we can get Carlton over the line against Melbourne.

Daylesford Winter Dispatch - Monday, 17th August 2015

Dear Friends, I left you last time about to go to the Sunday Market, followed by breakfast, where we enjoyed a lively and interesting conversation centred around Aileen’s brother, Ron. The rest of the day was quiet – spent by me watching footy and knitting. Wes worked on Joan’s estate and when he finally came upstairs to relax, he played Scrabble on his phone with the help of Bilbo as you can see.

The next morning, all three of us slept in and enjoyed a slow start to the day. Wes was sitting downstairs at 8am, when Barbara rang to say her carer hadn’t turned up and could he come over and help her, which he did immediately. Barbara later emailed us to say that she had been accidentally removed from the Master List at Council and the new roster didn’t include her. She had rung the emergency number, which didn’t answer and discovered the number had been changed without her knowledge. This sort of emergency happens occasionally to Barbara and I often think it must be extra difficult for those people who need carers and don’t have a back-up or simply can’t work out what to do – the people most in need often are the ones who fall through the cracks in any system.

On his return, Wes, still in his pjs and dressing gown complained of feeling lop-sided. You can see from the photo I took that he appeared to have dressed in a hurry - with one lace-up shoe and one slipper!

I set off to Tonna’s, as we needed muesli and pasta. David, who is on his honeymoon and currently in Malta, is sadly missed and without him, the place isn’t as cheery, especially as his sister, Danielle, was also away today. When Judi lived with us in 1979, she used to make her own muesli, which I thought most peculiar – it only took me about 30 years to catch up and realise that you could put in the things you wanted to make it suit your taste and so I have been for the past 6 years or so – figs, coconut, sunflower seeds, dried cranberries & blueberries, as well as the usual ingredients. Thank you Judi...sorry I was so unappreciative all those years ago, but you’ve always been a trendsetter.

We awoke to Brigadoon on Tuesday and some more rain. Wes set off to get the Daylesford Cinema ready for the film ‘Madame Bovary’ and I did a few chores before joining him there for the film. There were 19 of us in all and I think everyone enjoyed the film, which was faithful to the book, with my only complaint being the occasional jarring American twang. Afterwards I walked up the street to ‘The Food Gallery’, where Rhonda and I spent an enjoyable lunch hour chatting and catching up. We were entertained by the sight of the owners of the shop, ‘Harry and Me’ walking up and down the footpath with laden arms, as they shifted from their little, inaccessible shop to a recently vacated larger, much more accessible spot next door to ‘Sweet Decadence’.

My final stop was EKO for a long overdue manicure and pedicure with Alanna, and when that was done, I was very pleased to come home and rest for the remainder of the day. After taking Bilbo for a late afternoon walk, Wes cooked a yummy dish using tubular pasta that we hadn’t tried before, and we gave it the thumbs up.

We were all thrilled to see Sandra again on Wednesday morning as we had missed her while she was on two weeks’ holiday. She got a great welcome from Bilbo and then settled down to getting Maloney Folly back into shipshape condition. I went to play Mah Jong with Dot & Valerie, as Dot was finally home from her big holiday in the north. We had a most enjoyable morning catching up with each other’s news and all of us had a win. Valerie and I had a toasted sandwich afterwards then I went home to pack for the Sydney trip.

On Thursday morning, I said goodbye to my two boys and set off in fog and rain for Melbourne Airport. It was a good trip and when Danny arrived, we headed for the Qantas Club for a cuppa before our flight. Jane Knox was at the other end to meet us and take us to our hotel, the ‘Oaks Hyde Park Plaza’ at the corner of College & Oxford Streets. The next-door hotel, the ‘Pullman’, was where the Collingwood players were staying and Danny and I were thrilled to spot them from time to time.

No players, but black & white columns outside the Pullman looked very welcoming indeed.

Jane came to our apartment for a cuppa and chat and we arranged to have dinner at a dumpling restaurant, ‘Din Tai Fung’ that night with her and David. After Jane went home, Danny & I walked into town looking for a white T-shirt for me, which we found in David Jones. We also bought some juice, milk and tea bags for our stay. Wes and I had been at this hotel (in the late 80s I suspect), when we shared a 2-bedroom apartment with Shar & Jamie Lendrum. At that time, the rooms were huge and each bedroom had a bathroom and shared a big lounge and kitchen area. The refurbishment seems to have turned each of those apartments into two new 2-bedroom suites with only one bathroom, and much smaller lounge area. However, we were up high with a good view of the city and the apartment was clean & quiet.

We enjoyed our early meal at ‘Din Tai Fung’, where the dumplings were fresh and tasty, where there were almost as many staff as patrons, and where David & Danny found they had many interests in common and got on like a house on fire at first meeting. We were able to walk back to our hotel easily and fell asleep almost at once, as we were so tired.

On Friday, it was another lovely day in Sydney, not too hot, and we walked to breakfast at ‘White Carrots’ café, where we were fed yummy meals and found some AFL news to read in the Sydney papers. Afterwards we went for a long walk around Sydney and I tried unsuccessfully to get an ‘Age’ newspaper.

Jane collected me at 11am and we drove to Clovelly Beach where we had a good walk around and enjoyed a cuppa or two at ‘Seasalt Café’.

Meanwhile Danny’s friends, Alex & Gareth, had arranged lunch at ‘Catalina Restaurant’ at Rose Bay, which was apparently out of this world and most enjoyable. Jane dropped me off around 2pm so we could both have a rest before the footy and I spent the time trying to get into DA’s head with the Friday crossword.

We had a lovely time at the SCG, where we were joined by Terry McDonald, who took us on a guided tour of the Members and M A Noble stands.

Danny with his good mate, Steve Waugh

Terry had booked a table in the ‘Old Long Room’ and it was fun to meet up with his ex in-laws, Tim & Marjorie, and their friends and have a meal & a few drinks before the game. We had reserved our seats right behind the cameras on the wing in the Ladies Stand, and had an excellent view of the match. David had been working and arrived just before the game started. Sadly for Danny & me, the Pies were unable to match the intensity or accuracy of the Swans and we lost by 11 points in an interesting game. Jane & David dropped us back at our hotel before driving home themselves.

We started slowly on Saturday morning and decided to walk to the Strand Arcade for tea and toast. The only café there was full, so we opted for the Queen Victoria Building instead and enjoyed breakfast at ‘Kikko Caf . We then walked around The Rocks area before heading to Circular Quay and buying our tickets for the ferry to Neutral Bay, where we had been invited to lunch ‘Chez Knox’. We walked around the Opera House, then into the Botanical Gardens and around Government House, before making our way back to the Quay, where we were joined by Terry McDonald, who was also a lunch guest. The ferry trip was far too quick, but we had seats at the front of the boat and made the most of our time on the water.

David picked us up at the pier and took us home, where Jane had prepared the best meal I ate all trip. We started with garlic studded baked camembert and crusty bread, followed by perfectly cooked fish steaks with seaweed garnish and finished by somehow fitting in pudding & custard. Jane’s friend, Merrilyn, also joined us, and the six of us spent a very happy time around the lunch table, before David had to start work, and Jane offered to drive us all home. Danny had been invited to dinner by Min, Alex & Gareth, so, after a quick change, he set off with Min for a pre-dinner drink, and I settled down with a glass of red to watch the footy and enjoy an early night.

Yesterday while Danny slept in, I walked to Mrs Macquarie’s seat and back through the Botanic Gardens and via St Mary’s Cathedral. Danny was dressed and packed when I returned and we were ready at 10am for checkout and David’s arrival to drive us to the airport, which he had volunteered to do. Jane was visiting her father, Frank, for lunch and then driving to the snowfields as she had a three-day pass.

Danny & I had a late breakfast in the Qantas Club, before boarding our flight to Melbourne. It was a comfortable and enjoyable one on a very new plane and when meat pies and sauce were served for lunch, almost everyone on board tucked in with gusto. I found our car and drove home through sunshine, arriving back here about 4pm, where I was greeted warmly by Wes & Bilbo.

Wes had been busy – he had delivered a report on the National ALP Conference to the ALP meeting on Thursday night, invited Dene from next door, and Barbara from across the road for lunch on Friday, driven to Melbourne & back on Saturday for the auction of Joan Testro’s home in Malvern, and enjoyed Sunday breakfast with John & Jan Smith, Gail White, Aileen O’Reilly and Barbara Simpson. 

Daylesford Winter Dispatch - Sunday, 9th August, 2015

Dear Friends, thank you all for sending get well wishes. They must have worked, as after another couple of days, I finally managed to get up and dressed on Friday morning and went downstairs to attack the computer issues that had built up over the past week. Bilbo was very relieved to see me out of bed, even though we didn’t go on the Friday Bushwalk around Spargo Creek, which would have been beautiful. I stayed up until 2.30pm and then went back to bed.

Yesterday I lasted until 5.30pm, and had a 10-hour sleep, which was just what was needed. The cricket didn’t keep either of us awake as it was all over in a trice and poor Michael Clarke fell on his sword, which is a very sad way to finish what has been an illustrious career. At least we have a readymade and proven new Captain in Steve Smith, although his time at the helm will be shaky to start with.

Nurse Bilbo relaxing between shifts

I was very disappointed to miss out on Saturday in Melbourne – I had booked a ticket to see ‘David Bowie is’ at ACMI (The Australian Centre for the Moving Image) at Federation Square. Most of the exhibits had been on show at the Victoria & Albert Museum when we were last in London, but it was completely sold out, so I was delighted when it arrived here. Fortunately, ACMI is staffed with very understanding people who have changed my ticket without charge and I hope to go in a fortnight. I had planned to spend the afternoon at the footy with David Lazzaro and he still went and assured me that our seats in the MCC section were excellent. Lastly, I had booked a car park pass at the Melbourne & Olympic Parks Car Park and I was able to cancel that at no cost, which is very impressive.

Adam Goodes came back to play with the Swans last night at Geelong’s home ground, Kardinia Park, where both teams ran through a joint banner, and there was none of the intense, sustained booing that has greeted him for most of his games in the past year. Geelong won the game with a strong last quarter after a very even match.

This morning is cool but dry and I’m planning to take Bilbo to the Sunday Market, before the three of us go to Breakfast, which will be followed by a quiet day at home. Danny Millman and I are flying to Sydney on Thursday mainly to see Collingwood and Sydney play at the SCG on Friday night, but we are very much looking forward to catching up with friends, Jane & David Knox & Terry McDonald. Danny has other friends he is keen to see, so I imagine he will be out most nights, while I will be taking it very quietly indeed.

We arrive home on Sunday, so there may not be a Dispatch until Monday.

Daylesford Winter Dispatch - Wednesday, 5th August 2015

Dear Friends, on the Sunday before last, there were some flurries of snow around Daylesford, but I missed them as I was on the train to Melbourne to see Collingwood play the Western Bulldogs at the Docklands Stadium. Wes dropped me off at Ballan Station where I joined a big contingent of supporters of both sides. I was lucky enough to get a seat in the last carriage of the most packed train I have ever been on. The conductor had tried without success to get coaches to come to Melton Station to collect people and kept apologising for the crush. Everyone was amazingly well behaved and made the best of the situation.

David Lazzaro & I met up before the game and after half time; he sat next to me as no one had claimed that empty seat by then. I was 6 rows from the front, on the wing, with a great view and a terrific atmosphere. In the row behind was famous Collingwood player, Peter Moore, with his wife, to see their son, Darcy, play his 3^rd and best game for the Pies booting 5 goals in what was a losing score. We just couldn’t match the intensity of the Doggies, who deserved their 3-goal win.

On the train home, we were again squashed up, even though there were a maximum 7 carriages and once again, the conductor was apologetic. Because there is only one line between Bacchus Marsh and Ballarat, putting on an extra train is a logistical nightmare and so we put up with an hourly service and wish someone would hurry up and duplicate the line. Wes picked me up at Ballan and cooked yummy pizza for dinner.

He had spent most of his day helping his sister, Denise; celebrate her 70^th birthday with her partner, Barry, and sons Leon & Shaun. Later on her eldest son, John, arrived with his wife, Dannielle and their four children – Malachi, Kalarni, Dublin & Irish. Denise had cooked some hot dishes and Leon provided a wonderful birthday cake.

                                                                   

Barry, Shaun, Denise & Leon

On Monday, it was again quite cold but I soon warmed up at gym, where a few brave souls were gathered for the 8am session. Afterwards Nick Massaro arrived to give me a massage and tell me all about the holiday from hell that he and Robyn had spent in a small country town in Queensland, where they were house and dog sitting. The house was being renovated and had no plaster & no power points and the dog was an escape artist. As well it was cold and wet during most of their stay and he said they have never been so pleased to come back home.

Wes made another yummy experimental meal for lunch – this time it was baked cauliflower with mustard sauce and other vegetables. Bilbo enjoyed the leftovers for his dinner that night.

Wes had a very busy day on Tuesday – while I did some shopping and then visited Leanne, he went to the Daylesford Cinema to show the film ‘Aloha’, which was watched by only one person. After he finished there, he went to Margot’s home to install her new modem and make sure her computer was working properly. When that was accomplished, he visited his sister, Denise, to show her how to send photos from her computer and to collect his camera, which he had left at her place when he was there on Sunday. He arrived home to find Bilbo and I relaxing after a walk around Lake Daylesford, which we had fitted in while the sun was shining brightly.

On Wednesday morning, I delivered about 2 dozen glass jars to Mell Sappho, who runs ‘Keeping Daylesford Warm’ and is involved through her kids with the Daylesford Dharma School. Leanne was thrilled to dispose of her unwanted jars and Mell was delighted to give them to the school as containers for craft items. Then it was off to gym, the last class for me for 4 weeks, as Barry is going to Canada on a Buddhist retreat. There will be classes during his absence, but not until 9.30am or at night, which doesn’t suit me. So I will have to walk Bilbo and ride my exercise bike more often until Barry returns.

Lovely photos from a very happy celebration – David & Jane Knox looking swish, at the wedding of their daughter, Emily, to Alan Kinnear in London on Sunday

After visiting Lyndal Conroy for my regular fringe trim, I went to see Trish Nield to catch up on her news, as we hadn’t met up in ages. We spent a very happy two hours together and I was thrilled to see how relaxed she is, especially now that she has retired from her job as a funeral director. She had made parsnip & sage soup, followed by a freshly baked and iced carrot & walnut cake – very yum indeed. Wes spent the morning gardening, first at our place and then across the road with Barbara.

I went to bed early and watched Day 1 of the 3^rd Test at Edgbaston in disbelief as our wickets fell for meagre scores with the notable exception of Chris Rogers, who probably shouldn’t have been playing. When we woke the next morning and discovered that the Aussies had only made 136 runs, we were even more alarmed. That is nothing to the horror we are experiencing with the dreadful racial booing of former Australian of the Year, Adam Goodes, when he plays footy for the Sydney Swans. Some journalists and shock jocks are fuelling the flames, while the AFL, its management, players and coaches are all united in wanting to stamp racism out of our sport and especially the bullying that Goodes is experiencing when he is on the field.

Bilbo sniffing the first of our bulbs – tête-â-têtes – in bloom

Bilbo and I had a lovely long, but brisk walk to, and around, the Wombat Gardens the next day, where the day was dry, but the wind cold, and my phone suggested that it was 3°, but felt like -4°. After a pot of tea and a chat with Leanne, I got changed into glad rags and we went to lunch at the ‘Daylesford Bowling Club’, to celebrate our friend, George Killingback’s 80^th birthday. We were very honoured to be part of a group of about 30, friends and family, and especially delighted when George spent about 10 minutes with us, reminiscing about his early life in England and the decision to emigrate out here. One of his guests was the man who met them at the ship when they docked in Melbourne.

George, Vera, son Paul & daughter, Jane at the cutting of the cake.

In the afternoon Wes had promised to go back to help Margot with further computer issues so I sat quietly with Bilbo until I realised I really wanted to go to bed and I’ve basically been there ever since. Perhaps I caught a germ on one of the very crowded trains on the previous Saturday, or maybe I was getting cocky as Winter was nearly over and I hadn’t been sick at all!

It has certainly been a struggle with this dose of bronchial asthma, and when Wes rang to get me an appointment at the Medical Centre, their suggestion was to stay warm in bed and just ride it out, that no antibiotics would be prescribed and I would probably only get worse by going into the cold. On Monday, Wes was able to get some decongestant tablets, which are much easier to take than cough medicine and seem to be helping. It is just rather slow and very frustrating, as I can’t talk without coughing.

Nurse Maloney has been fantastic – Nurse Baggins also, but in a different way – he sees his role as one of the comforter and has been lying by my side very diligently except when dinner time beckons and he then gets agitated in case Nurse Maloney has forgotten that 5pm is the sacred hour.

Nurse Bilbo – TLC a speciality

So instead of walking, breakfasting, the Farmers Market, the Daylesford Primary School Book Fair, the Sunday Market, footy, socialising, shopping, cleaning and resting – I’ve only been doing the resting. The boys next door popped in some home-made doughnuts; Wes has been prepared to make whatever I feel like (not much most of the time); provide umpteen hot lemon & ginger drinks; give up all rights to The Age until the crosswords are done, and he and Bilbo have moved downstairs to sleep to let me cough without worrying about waking them. He also drove Margot to the airport yesterday after getting someone else to do his projectionist shift at the Daylesford Cinema, and visited Leanne afterwards. This morning he is in cold, wet Ballarat, as I had booked the Mazda 2 in for service. He was going to help Barbara go swimming, but they abandoned those plans when the weather was so unsuitable.

Now I’m back to bed with fingers crossed that I’ll be able to get up again for a while this afternoon, and that the worst is over. Thanks to everyone who sent messages wondering if I was OK when nothing appeared in their inbox last Sunday morning. It was very lovely to know you were worried. Hopefully I’ll have much cheerier news on Sunday.