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Sunday, 14 August 2016

Daylesford Winter Dispatch - Sunday, 14th August, 2016



Dear Friends, have we been busy this week! It started on Sunday, when we drove to Melbourne to meet Leigh, Simon & Charlotte Murrin at my current favourite breakfast/brunch spot – the Square & Compass in East Melbourne. Matt had saved us a table inside, but we opted for sitting out in the sun, which was perfect. We were all pleased to see each other again and chatted happily until it was time to walk to the MCG to see Carlton play St Kilda.



Wes made sure we went past Shane Warne’s statue, as Leigh is such a fan, and she was thrilled as you can see. Sadly, I’ve chopped Shane’s head off in my photo, but you get the general idea.



We found our seats, which were on the roofline on the ground level and went for a quick drink before play started. Wes and I were most disappointed that Carlton had left their wonderful attacking game at home – they put up a poor show against the Saints and Leigh didn’t get too many chances to cheer. Simon & Charlotte were bemused by Aussie Rules, but Charlotte asked lots of good questions and was very taken by the fact that supporters of both sides sat together.


At half time, we went for a quick tour of the MCC, starting on the 4th Level and making our way back down via the Library, Long Room & Members’ Dining room.

At the end of the game, because it was Sunday, there was kick to kick after the siren, so we walked on the MCG and had great fun dodging footies.



We left the ground via the Great Southern Stand and all five of us piled into the Mazda 2 and set off for St Kilda, with a slight deviation so Simon could see the Grand Prix site. We then drove home, while the Murrins prepared to catch up with Terry, Mary & Jessie over dinner that night.

On Monday, after walks, gym & a massage, we had brunch with Mick & Suzanne Leahy, good friends from Brunswick Rotary days that we have not seen in a long time. We went to the Boathouse Daylesford and waited for them, wondering what had happened – they had gone to the Lake House instead!


We had cancelled our usual activities for Tuesday & Wednesday to be ready for the arrival of the Murrins in Daylesford. However, Wes went to Howe Automotive to pick up a new battery for the Mazda 6, so that we wouldn’t have any embarrassing moments during the next day’s tour. The Murrins visited Viva’s grave in the morning and then spent a lovely time catching up with Leanne at Strathmore before driving here and checking into Lake Daylesford Cottage.

They drove to our place in pouring rain, bearing lovely gifts and being thrilled by the Carlton pyjama pants we had left for them all, as well as Tim Tams & chocolate Teddy Bears. Wes cooked a brilliant fish pie, honey soy chicken drumsticks & steamed beans, which he followed with an Eton mess (made with Charlotte’s help) and some cheeses. He also taught Charlotte how to taste wines and she seemed very appreciative of the lesson.

We met Leigh & Simon at 7.15am outside Lake Daylesford Cottage, introduced them to Barry the fisherman, and walked around the lake for an hour. It was very peaceful and we all enjoyed the time together. At 9am, we went to Boathouse Daylesford to meet the three of them for breakfast, and Doug, the waiter, was busy trying to get the fire going without smoking out the café. He asked Wes for help and they had fun deciding it would be best to let the fire go out, as the customers would probably prefer the doors closed and no internal smoke. Breakfast was very yummy and Simon declared the Istra bacon to be the best he had ever tasted.


Wes then drove us all on the $35 tour – taking in Jubilee Lake; East Street natural spring; Wombat Hill Botanic Gardens; Musk; Trentham; Trentham Falls; Little Hampton; Mt Franklin; Dry Diggings; the Chocolate Mill (where the Murrins had fun drinking hot chocolates & choosing their chockies to take away); Franklinford; Shepherds Flat; Hepburn; the Hepburn Springs Golf Club (only 2 kangaroos & too far away to see clearly), and finally Vincent Street Daylesford and a chance to stretch our legs and inspect the shops.


Wandering along Vincent St, Daylesford

I went home after that for a rest, while Wes took the Murrins to Sailors Falls Estate, where Rob & Marg had opened their winery especially for us. I think it was another good experience and Wes certainly came home with plenty of his favourite Pinot Gris for our cellar.

We had invited Judi & Michael, Barbara & Gillie to come at 5.30pm for Aperitifs and to meet the Murrins, so we lit the fire, put out lots of nibbles, and welcomed our guests, who came bearing some beautiful wines. Michael helped Wes produce a yummy salmon & fennel pasta, while the rest of us chatted and got stuck into the wine, cheese & nibbles. It was a lovely night, and everyone was home again by 8pm.

Fortunately, Wayne, from Barclays in Ballarat, had fixed our dishwasher that morning and we were very grateful to Sandra, who stayed around our house until Wayne was finished rather than leaving him to lock up and put the keys back under the mat. After 8 weeks without a dishwasher, we were more than ready to get back into stacking & forgetting mode!

The next morning Wes and I had planned a sleep-in – instead we were wide awake at 4.30am, so he got up & dressed, cleaned out the fireplace, did some chores, had breakfast and eventually went back to bed with the Age to read. I got up slowly after a pot of tea, went around to Lake Daylesford Cottage to say goodbye again to the Murrins; walked Bilbo around the Lake; filled up with petrol; delivered Glenn’s mail to his home in anticipation of his arrival back today, and came back to watch the Olympic swimming (wouldn’t mind a call of the races instead of a commentary of where an Australian is or isn’t)! We were both hungry by midday and enjoyed some leftovers as Wes usually manages to cater for double the number of guests we have!


Lunch for the Murrins in Lakes Entrance – flathead tails, fish, chips, dim sims & potato cakes!

The next morning, my two boys went for their usual early walk, while I stayed in bed drinking tea until I had solved DA’s not so dastardly Friday cryptic crossword. Wes headed off to Trentham Golf Course for a lovely, but cold 10 holes, fitted in a visit to Trentham cemetery, and ended up at Chaplin’s meeting Noel Harvey, who wanted to run an idea past him. I did some shopping for Leanne, pumped water at Leitches Creek, and did a few more loads in the dishwasher.

That afternoon late, we drove to Melbourne to see Collingwood play the Western Bulldogs at the Docklands Stadium. As an MCC member, I can buy a seat for myself & a guest in the Centre Wing area on Level 2. We had a great view and as we were early, headed to the special club area for a glass or two of Shiraz. Every table had a container of peanuts with a spare container for the shells. We immediately thought of the peanut man, who used to visit all the suburban grounds on a Saturday afternoon with a sack of paper bags full of peanuts – ‘peanuts, shilling a bag, peanuts’. I also thought of my dear father, Perc, who loved peanuts in their shells and would have approved of this offering.


We were lucky enough to see a stunning close game of footy, where the scores were level 11 times and the Doggies held on to win by 3 points on their home ground. We were most impressed by the free water bottles on offer and the free water filling stations situated all around the ground. There was a young bulldog as a mascot and unlike most other teams, their scoreboard showed highlights from both sides during the breaks. If only the Blues had been able to match the Saints and played a close exciting game like this for the Murrins last Sunday.

We were so tired yesterday morning that we slept in and woke to find Brigadoon had descended on Daylesford and we couldn’t see past our decking. It was a tea & toast & watching the Olympics morning, followed by footy in the afternoon. Wes got very frustrated with Carlton again and retreated to the bedroom to watch a video. I had to let him know that the Blues were back in the game, and they only lost by 4 points in the end to a very determined Brisbane Lions outfit. We have been listening to the Olympics on the radio to get a rounder commentary, but it is very frustrating, as the TV is about 30 seconds behind real time.


Last night was the first Gay Pride AFL footy game between St Kilda & Sydney & there was a great atmosphere at the Docklands. It was an even first half, but the Swans ran riot in the second half and left the Saints in their wake.


This morning, it is a cool, damp morning – the boys have been for their early walk and I will take Bilbo to the Sunday Market shortly. After breakfast, we are driving to Torquay to have lunch with Robert & Marilyn Preston, where we will swap stories about our Scotland trips. Meanwhile the Murrins will catch up with Peter & Anka this afternoon, which means they will have seen all Leigh’s cousins on this trip to Oz.

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