Fancy asking Snoopy to mind biscuits!
We started this week very quietly with a quick visit to the Daylesford Market, and then very little else as we were both tired after our busy week. Morse gets very down once we come back from the Market, as all the excitement is over for another week.
On Monday, after shopping, we were due for a cleaning frenzy, and it was the turn of the laundry/dog room & hallways. Wes climbed the ladder to get to the top of the laundry appliances & cupboards, while I scoured doors and skirting boards. When we were finished he washed those floors and we were very proud of our efforts.
Later that morning, we enjoyed a Zoom catch up with Mike & Linda Kirby on the Gold Coast and talked seriously about the changes to all our lives, before finishing on a fun note with Melbourne Cup chatter. In the afternoon, Australia hosted Pakistan in the 1st One Day International at the MCG. Both sides showed some moments of brilliance, but the Aussies prevailed thanks to a sensible innings from Pat Cummins, when our middle order was floundering.
Beautiful Ashram in bloom
It was a perfect day for the Melbourne Cup - warm, cloudless and windless and a bumper crowd turned up. We always get nostalgic for those many Cup Carnivals we attended over many years, usually with good friends, and usually great fun. Although we didn't have a single collect, we enjoyed watching the races and were especially thrilled when Robbie Nolan piloted Knight's Choice (which paid $63.50 for the win) to the front in a stunning display of riding. Morse turned 6 and we celebrated by singing Happy Birthday & giving him biscuits with Vegemite, which he loves.
On Wednesday I was booked for my second cataract operation, and I was less uptight than the first as I knew what to expect. We arrived at 9.15am & I was seen half an hour later, which was better than the first operation, where I waited 75 minutes to be called. Everything went smoothly and we were back home by midday. I went straight to bed as I was quite wobbly. There's something about wearing a concave rigid plastic eye cover, which has been plastered onto your face, which make you just a little uncertain of your balance. In fact, I poured my first cup of tea onto the tray, missing the cup completely!
Peace rose enjoying the sunshine in the front garden
As anyone who has been through this knows, trying to sleep with this eye protector is almost impossible, and it is a great relief to remove it the next morning & get started on the eye drops - one drop 4 times a day for the next 4 weeks. As you are required to lie quietly for 5 minutes each time, that means 9 hours & 20 minutes out of the month, but it is worth it in the end to have better sight - distance in my case. I will still need reading glasses, but can't get them for six weeks, after we return from Adelaide.
This lilac rhododendron is the only one we have and it is always late flowering, but worth the wait.
Thank God for Oaks Day and a wonderful distraction. We ended up even with our betting, and enjoyed watching the beautiful horses, roses and the fashions, which were much dressier and less gimmicky than in previous years. I spent Friday in bed, after doing too much the day before. It was cold & wet in the morning, so that was the best place to be, and I could watch the Pakistan team play brilliantly to beat us in the second One-Day International at Adelaide Oval. Today's third & deciding game will be very interesting as half our team will be missing as they prepare for the Test series against India.
Yesterday I spent the morning up, picked some roses, stewed pears & rhubarb, and did a load of washing, before retreating to bed and the final day of the Cup Carnival - Champions Stakes Day. Wes worked hard in the front garden, trimming, weeding, watering etc, before joining me to watch the main races. What a delight to see Via Sistina salute easily again, as well as Sunshine in Paris & Mr Brightside score stirring wins. I think this has been the best Cup Carnival in years, with such wonderful horses providing great racing.
Munstead Wood, Beautiful Girl & Guy Savoy
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