Month: September 2008

Since we got home I have been finding it very hard to get back into the swing of things. I just drop everything and have taken that many breaks during the day it’s a wonder anything has been done at all.

Hopefully next week will be a bit better and I’ll get back into the general routine of life as it was before.

We have had some rather nice weather these past few days, which meant I spent a lot of the time outside – not just gazing into space but doing fruitful jobs. Or least I hope they will be

This patch of ground at the bottom of the garden has evolved slowly over the past few years. From a wholly grassed back garden – that way ‘cose both of us were working full time and it was easier just to mow than tend to ‘flowers’ – to a ‘pretty’ garden has taken a while mainly because of the water shortage and lack of finances 😦

The first photo was taken in October 2003, then October 2004 and the last in December 2006 so it has filled out slowly. October is Spring and December is summer so you can see how the grass suffered from the years when there was no rain at all. We were lucky with rain this Winter – we actually had some, so its green at the moment but that will most likely change once the hot dry days of summer arrive.

This particular day DH wasn’t happy ‘cose the aircraft museum he had planned to visit was closed so we had a change of plan and he soon got into the swing of things when this little one came over to say hello 🙂

This funny looking fellow is a Rock Wallaby and lives near Mareeba in Far North Queensland

Going out from Cairns beyond Mareeba where coffee is grown there is a place called Granite Gorge Nature Park where you can walk about and climb the enormous huge granite boulders that just seem to be strewn all around the place. DH and I spent the best part of an afternoon there. Part of the fun is being able to hand feed some ‘wild’ rock wallabies.

‘Granite Gorge, a privately operated nature park on the outskirts of Mareeba. Here the endangered Mareeba Rock Wallaby stages its last stand; it maintains a strong foothold at Granite Gorge where they congregate each afternoon to be fed, stroked, caressed and photographed by the daily throng of visitors. The mammoth strange shaped granite boulders of the gorge offers grand opportunities to explore the valley below. Picnic sites, natural swimming holes and overnight camping are all available at the gorge’

Click on the link to find out more about the park, also on the photos to enlarge them

Been home a week now, its been a busy one and I’m feeling a bit jaded.

Wish I were here

Its certainly not shorts and t-shirt weather here in Melbourne yet. Bit chilly overnight and warming a little bit during the day, never the less we live in Melbourne so it will change there’s no doubt about that.

Now this is where I would still like to be and we have already marked the weeks on next years calendar for a return visit. Go in and look at the site to see the view from the golf course, well that’s just how it was. No wonder DH was loath to leave 🙂

We aren’t part of the grey nomad brigade that tootle along all winter pulling a van behind us so DH and I stayed here while our friends were across the road in the caravan/trailer park.

There’s a button marked attractions where it mentions Murals. These are painted on buildings all round the little town depicting life as it has been over the years. This is one DH photographed – wonder why?

Bowen played a big part in the WW2 especially during the Pacific and the Coral Sea Campaign so all round the town there are plaques on little old tumbledown houses telling who used it and for how long. Click on the photos to enlarge for a better view

I won’t go on about all the ins and outs of our time away ‘cept to say as well as the restful time we had here we wandered further north up to Townsville and Cairns which I’ll talk about some other time.

Anyway life is going along ok at the moment. I emptied (as in ate all the food) the fridge freezer before we went away as it desperately needed defrosting and cleaning so have spent this week looking for bargains in any form to freeze and use at a later date.

I have to tell you about the best deal of the week – for me that is.

We have a fruit and veg place nearby that has started boxing up odd bits of maybe bruised stuff or bigger/smaller items that are still edible but would need to be eaten sooner rather than later.

At $2 a box I often wondered if it was worth parting with the gold coin for what I thought was rubbish – anyway the other day I took the plunge and here’s what I got.

Enough small potatoes for an army, several onions, half a cauliflower, some bruised apples, a punnet of strawberries, lots of tiny mandarins, a whole cantaloupe and 1 huge pear. After discarding the big strawberry on the top that looked a bit off I cleaned them up then cut up the cantaloupe. Not much wrong with them that I could see so they are in the fridge for those ‘I want something to pick at’ moments.

Some of the spuds and the cauliflower we used for dinner last night, I’m going to lightly cook the apples and the pear to have with yogurt for dessert this evening. Not sure what to do with the mandarins as they are a bit tart, possibly just have them with ice cream or yogurt after a curry which will come from some of the beef I managed to get at a good price 🙂

Sounds like the machine has stopped so I’m off to hang the washing out.

Yes I’m home again. Weary after driving nearly 3oookms/1865 miles in 3 days but looking forward to Spring.

Its just a memory now but we had the best fun for a long time.

Just doing nothing.

For nearly 4 weeks I did just what I’m doing in the picture below. It snowed at home (quite a rarity where I live) and here I was enjoying 27c/81f

Walking on the beach at Bowen North Qld. – enjoying the fact that apart from dh and me (and the person behind us) there was no one else to be seen along the whole shoreline.

This is what Dh and his friend did on most of those mornings.

They reckoned they could take on Tiger Woods any day lol

The golf course was at the end of the van park and the beach right there also.

During the first week away we went to see the grand-daughter who lives in Brisbane – and what do Grandmas do with grandchildren – they teach life skills.

This little one can’t knit and her mother doesn’t either so as there was wool and needles in the car we did a little bonding in the park close to her home.

I don’t when we will see each other again so I treasured every moment that day.

We went to other places and I’ll talk about those another day. Will be back soon

Click on the photos to enlarge