Daylesford Autumn Dispatch - Sunday, 31st May 2026

 
I'm sure Morse thinks he is!

As promised last Sunday, we had a very quiet start to our week. Wes had made a superhuman effort to get out of bed and drive me to the station on Saturday, and then collect me the following morning, after walking Morse & doing the Daylesford Market shopping. We watched most of the Carlton game again, the last quarter of the North match, and minis of everything else!

On Monday, we both walked Morse early, where the temperature was a balmy 11℃ at 6.15am. I did the shopping at Coles and came home with our Baker's Delight treats - spinach & feta croissants, which were still warm from their oven. Then we compared Calendars and booked in an Anniversary celebration next month, and a visit to Chadstone Shopping Centre in July to see the latest Rone exhibition - Home ("This immersive exhibition reconstructs a Chadstone shopfront as a familiar yet disquieting Australian weatherboard house. Visitors step inside a space that feels at once intimate and nostalgic, where materially rich, time-worn interiors sit in contrast to the controlled architecture of the centre.")

I went back into town to collect our monthly prescriptions and met old friend, Barry Spall, at the pharmacy. We have known Barry almost since we arrived here in Daylesford, and I am especially grateful to him for running a wonderful gym for many years - I benefitted very much from his advice, programmes & guidance. We chatted about footy of course - he is a Doggies fan, and they had beaten Melbourne in a close, exciting game the night before. His wife, Fran, is a very keen Geelong supporter, who has been enjoying the way they are playing at present.

My Mother's Day Oriental lilies opening beautifully

The next morning, Wes & Morse walked early, while I tried to contact my aunt, Jeff, in Lincolnshire for our fortnightly WhatsApp chat, but had no luck getting in touch. Afterwards I Zoomed with Leanne, who was booked in for her COVID booster; before heading to Leitches Creek to pump mineral water, and then onto Hepburn Springs for a manicure with Juls, who is busy planning her 70th birthday party in Melbourne next month. 

It was a warm day for May, so Wes got started on the pruning - he filled a green bin, and then mowed before retiring to fix a couple of areas that had been damaged by the cockies. We had learnt of the death of Neale Daniher - an amazing man, who was last year's Australian of the Year for his fight to find a cure for MND. He was diagnosed in 2013, after a career as an Aussie Rules footballer, coach & administrator, and spent his remaining years fund-raising. He will be given a State Funeral and next month's King's Birthday clash between Collingwood & Melbourne will celebrate his legacy in style. 

Wes was able to wash & vacuum the floors on Wednesday while I had a full blood test at Springs Medical, and then played Mah Jong with Judi. I had fasted for the test in the hope that would give a more accurate reading, so needed something to eat & drink before Judi arrived at Muffins & More café. Fortunately there was a savoury muffin left, and I was delighted when it was served warm & with curls of butter!

Yummy muffin

 My beautiful All Honours Hand with 3 concealed Kongs - that doesn't happen often

Lovely photo of Judi with the Three Philosophers' winning hand

That night, Wes has another go at steaming dumplings - this time the prawn & ginger ones he had bought from the Ballarat Fish Supply, and he used our rice cooker. The dumplings were perfectly cooked and very yummy with a little soy sauce on the side. We finished our meal with an interesting English cheese & crackers.

We walked Morse early again on Thursday before Wes drove Snoopy to Ballarat for its 12 month service. I had set aside the morning to change from our lightweight to heavyweight doona cover, and apart from a great WhatsApp catch up with Old Friends, I spent most of my time around the laundry! Wes arrived home at lunchtime with custard tarts & a date roll for afternoon tea from Golden Nugget bakery.

On Friday, I had my regular appointment with my podiatrist, Peter Dietsch, at Springs Medical Centre. He was only 15 minutes late, which is pretty good by his standards, as he drives to Daylesford from Castlemaine, and I suspect he is already late by the time he leaves home. Meanwhile Wes spent the morning in the back garden doing more pruning & mowing as we were expecting rain for the next few days. That night Carlton had an unexpected and excellent win against Geelong, one of the Flag favourites. Wes is on Cloud Nine after three wins in a row. 

The last of the Autumn leaves greeted us as we arrived home from our early walk

Yesterday we woke to a dense fog, but were able to walk Morse, and amazingly saw a bunny, who led him on a merry chase. We then drove to Strathmore to spend time with Leanne. She is doing very well, but as anyone who lives on their own knows, you sometimes need to run your thoughts past others, as you can get the wrong idea. We chatted about a few things, put her mind at rest about some of them, and had a walk around her garden where we found oranges, parsley, thyme & spinach shoots all doing well.

Last night Collingwood fell 4 points short of beating the Western Bulldogs after a spirited last quarter comeback. I fell asleep at half-time and will look forward to catching up on the second half today, which is going to be a very quiet one with more rain expected.