Month: July 2019

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Nothing stays the same…

Things change – we know they do.  Nothing stay the same forever. Yet when some changes happen we aren’t always pleased… are we.

We’ve been coming up here for over 10 years now and much has changed…the weather (cyclones and storms) has changed much of the infrastructure.  Money comes and money goes from this little community…..many business’ have closed… and yet others that cater to tourism appear to be thriving

A great deal of the film/movie ‘Australia’ was shot here so it gained a bit of publicity from that…..some businesses are still ‘trading’ on the fact the ‘stars’ were regular customers and I’m sure some locals are still using their ‘extras’ work as ‘dinner party’ conversations 🙂

The lovely place we stay in each time we visit has changed hands.  Previously owned by a local couple, they purchased it (2005) as a very run down caravan park and transformed it into a clean welcoming friendly place with a 4* rating in all the tourist brochures, almost a home from home.  We did know it was up for sale – no investment money around – so each year we’d turn up and be met by Craig and Donna and know we were in good hands.

Anyway last January, just four months after we drove home in the September the new business owners took over.  Now it has a commercial feel about it.  No smiles in the office, a penny pinching feel about the place.  Lots of ‘signs’ about the place….do this, don’t do that.  Other things like washing machines now xx$ to use, the free to use BBQs are not free any more.

Items in ours and the other cabins have been depleted, tiny things that ‘made’ the place different to any other cabin we’ve staying in during our travels.  We’ve used the same cabin for the last 8 years so were very familiar with the inventory.

~ ~ c~~c ~ ~c

So I wrote that after a ‘run in’ with the office.  I’m still ropable but coming back down to earth.  I’m in good health, the sun is shining, it’such much warmer than at home, and…..I’ll get over it.

Monday Musings are just that!  Non Verbal ‘Thinkings’ not meant to be Whinges….. but today I’m not in good form.  How’s your Monday shaping up??

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Psst…Do I have a bargain for you!

You may or may not have seen this before – whichever way….Just enjoy 😊

iPads for sale

Real Good Opportunities at Best Bargains Galore

Hello everyone

If you are interested in getting an iPad I can get hold of them through a contact

Now these are legit, not off the back of a truck

They are from a cancelled hospital contract due to the governments cutbacks

However the numbers are limited

I have 20 going for less than half the price so it’s first come – first served

I have already sold one
(see pic below)

Get back to me quick as you can if you want one

You know what they say
– laugh and the world laughs with you –
Cry and you cry alone

Now you wouldn’t want to be lonely would you??

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Sometimes we need a Silly Saturday – today’s the day! Enjoy 😊😊

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Why…

Terrible Internet here – drops out….at the drop of a hat!  We’ve been here a week tomorrow…..slowly settling in for the long haul !

People ask me every year – Why drive four days?

So the Golfer can play here

So I can play here

But mainly- So we can enjoy a little winter warmth 😎

See you next week….I hope 😊

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You had one job….

It wasn’t the best start to the day!

I’d finished my one planned ‘job’ for the day …..to have a bit of a freezer clear out.   Oh look, four slices of fruit loaf left – just the thing for elevenses.  At 10.30! 😊

One last job – make coffee and fruit loaf for The Golfer and me.  Then we were off out for the day.

Being the polite dutiful wife person that I am…..I served him first – then popped the other two slices in the toaster….minus one corner that had somehow broken off in the freezer.

Result – burnt! And no more left to make me another serving 😥

How on earth could I manage that after all the times/years I’ve used this toaster and never burnt anything before?

Well I’m having the last laugh because I’ve relegated the little so and so back into the cupboard where he…..yes definitely a ‘he’ ….can wait ’til we return and put him to work again.  In a few weeks time!

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Cool clear waters….

Cool it may be outside, the skies might have been clear for the past couple of days but we’re expecting lots of churning waters in the next 24hrs.  Still Waters they won’t be

Little things are sent to try us…..another of my mother’s sayings.

Like prices rising a dollar or two…not a lot yet when the total sale is recorded turns out to be more than a lot.

Like nipping into the local supermarket – in jeans runners and windcheater, hair pinned back, bare face – only to ‘bump into’ the only person you know who ‘dresses’ for grocery shopping.

Like illness striking at the most annoying time.  Still waiting for improvement to see if The Golfer is able to drive at the end of the week.  He golfed yesterday, declaring his leg felt much better……maybe…possibly…,we’ll get off on time.

Like trying to roll over on those new sheets…….after a couple of washes they are definitely much softer yet as The Golfer says….it’s like trying to roll over Velcro.

Heres the blurb from the manufacturer’s website:-

For dreamy slumber made cosy and warm, opt for the brushed polyester feel of the Plain Thermal Flannelette Sheet Set from XXXX

Pure polyester in a microfibre finish for warmth and comfort
One side is brushed in a flannelette surface for a classically fluffy texture and plush feel
Easy care fabric is wrinkle resistant for lasting good looks
Generous wall on the fitted sheet so making the bed is a breeze and the sheet stays secured to the mattress throughout the night
Ideal for adding an extra layer of warmth to your bed in winter — so cosy and comfortable you’ll never want to leave the bed
Plain dye for an effortlessly stylish palette to complement your bed linens for years to come
All XXXX products comply with international ethical standards and undergo quality assurance tests to ensure your peace of mind

They were more likeable 2nd time on the bed and they did have a comfy warm feeling to them but obviously ‘Thermal Flanelette’  wasn’t what I thought it was.  Hopefully the warmer weather will have arrived when we get back in September so they can live at the back of the linen cupboard waiting for those really cold weeks in winter.  Next winter that is 😎

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Old joke renewed..

Look what’s doing the rounds again – turned up in my inbox the other day 😊

The Barman and the Duck

A duck walks into a pub and orders a pint of beer and a ham sandwich.

The barman looks at him and says, ‘Hang on! You’re a duck.’

‘I see your eyes are working,’ replies the duck.

‘And you can talk!’ exclaims the barman.

‘I see your ears are working, too,’ says the duck.

‘Now if you don’t mind, can I have my beer and my sandwich please?’

‘Certainly, sorry about that,’ says the barman as he pulls the duck’s pint.

‘It’s just we don’t get many ducks in this pub. What are you doing round this way?’

‘I’m working on the building site across the road,’ explains the duck. ‘I’m a plasterer.’

The flabbergasted barman cannot believe the duck and wants to learn more, but takes the hint when the duck pulls out a newspaper from his bag and proceeds to read it.

So, the duck reads his paper, drinks his beer, eats his sandwich, bids the barman good day and leaves.

The same thing happens for two weeks.

Then one day the circus comes to town.

The ringmaster comes into the pub for a pint and the barman says to him,

‘You’re with the circus, aren’t you?’

‘ Well, I know this duck that could be just brilliant in your circus. He talks, drinks beer, eats sandwiches, reads the newspaper and everything!’

‘Sounds marvellous,’ says the ringmaster, handing over his business card. ‘Get him to give me a call.’

So the next day when the duck comes into the pub the barman says, ‘Hey Mr. Duck, I reckon I can line you up with a top job, paying really good money.’

‘I’m always looking for the next job,’ says the duck. ‘Where is it?’

‘At the circus,’ says the barman.

‘The circus?’ repeats the duck. ‘

That’s right,’ replies the barman.

‘The circus?’ the duck asks again.

‘That place with the big tent?’ ‘

Yeah,’ the barman replies.

‘With all the animals who live in cages, and performers who live in caravans?’ says the duck.

‘Of course,’ the barman replies.

‘And the tent has canvas sides and a big canvas roof with a hole in the middle?’ persists the duck.

‘That’s right!’ says the barman.

The duck shakes his head in amazement, and says ……………

‘Why the h……would they need a plasterer?’

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Fun Friday – the day we forget the worries of the week 😊

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Teddy Bear Teddy Bear…Hong Kong style

Beside the escalators in the big ‘open all hours’  apm shopping centre Hong Kong

A shopping mall for the young and trendy

1 November 2017

You know all those craft supplies you have just waiting to be used…..here’s a Sweet Smelling, Soft and Flowery idea

~ ~ ~

And here’s one Just for the Young…

Wordless Wednesday occurs all over the Internet each Wednesday, when bloggers let photos speak for themselves.

Click the link below to see what bloggers have to say Wordlessly (or almost)

Wordless Wednesday.

 

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Winter days…

Here we are into July already…..one month of winter gone….we’ve had wintery weather to go with it too…..wet days and dry days…..cold grey days when you wish you didn’t have to get out of bed.  Days when you are thankful for being retired and not ‘having’ to be responsible…..for anything or even anyone.  Nights with strong winds and teeming rain.

Then days when it’s been dry enough to do a little bit of  tidying up in the garden – a garden sorely neglected over this past summer.  This past week we had sunny days, days comfortable enough to not have the heating on – sunny and comfortable enough to gather up the energy to give the roses their annual haircut.

I can’t help but feel a little lighter in mind and spirit when I notice signs of life out there.  Things that – unlike me – rise to the occasion during these cold months.

Blurry photos of early Jonquils- Narcissi- Winter Iris…blowing in the wind. Taken a couple of days ago.
They don’t seem to ‘see’ the weedy grasses that shouldn’t be where they are or the old fallen leaves on the ground around them…….or even my old enemy, the bulbous Oxalis that spreads across every open spot it can find.

Of course it’s early days still – winter stays around much longer.  Spring doesn’t arrive here until September!

If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind? 

Ode to the West Wind – Percy Bysshe Shelley

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One thing leads to another

Have you ever experienced an earworm – A tune/ song that gets into your brain –  going round and round in your mind, being there at the most unexpected moments

Mine began…..if that’s how you could describe it with a simple email.

Sunday last week I had a photo forwarded to me……taken at the end of our last choir concert.  You know the ‘fun’ one where everyone is supposed to be silly….only some didn’t get the cue….me included.  Smiling broadly, thinking why aren’t we finished, others had moved…..leaving me (lower level far right) looking as though I’m in the spotlight 

Wednesday at the last coffee morning for this half of the year,  just after B had entertained us with her impersonation of a gypsy woman trying her hand at fortune telling by attempting a bit of palm reading,  Janet went on to describe how her young neighbours reacted with almost horror at her placing a coin in their newborn grandsons hand.  “Surely they’d heard of the Irish custom of crossing the baby’s palm with silver”

I listened to others talking about windy days and trying to walk up hilly streets, mentioning the fact the wind was in the right place …….right behind them, pushing them up the hill!

Then blow me down that afternoon at the last choir rehearsal for a while Mary reminded us to take care of ourselves until we meet again (a longer time in my case than the others)

Thinking back now I can now see all those little hints were conspiring with each other and making secret  plans to upset my ‘quiet times’ and ‘peace of mind’ for the rest of the week.

Can you guess what little ‘tune’ has been going round and round in my head since then.  One we sang at the concert!  Not quite as loudly as the clip below……not all of us were there that day and – well, there being far more in the clip choir……but we did sing with just as much ‘love and gusto’

Irish Blessing

May the road rise up to meet you
May the wind be ever at you back
May the sunshine warm upon your face and the rain fall soft upon your fields
And until we meet again, until we meet again 
May God hold you in the palm of his hand

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

 It’s very early Monday morning here – how was your week…..do you have anything special planned for this  week?    Personally, if I could persuade the last two lines of that song to leave my brain and take a hike I’d be happy 😎

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