My Journal:

March 2010

I'm standing here (I have a stand-at desk, which is healthier than sitting all day) on one leg, having broken a small bone in my right foot a couple of weeks ago. What a pain (forgive the pun)it's been too! There's never a good time for things like this, but isn't it always the way that they happen when one seems to be busiest? I wouldn't be so miffed if I'd been doing something exciting to damage myself, but all I was doing was scrubbing the pool. Oh well, I guess it could have been worse.

Early this month I made the mistake of agreeing to 'show' someone how to set up a newsletter. I say mistake because somehow I ended up agreeing to actually compiling the newsletter and it has proved to be one of those that requires a lot of chasing around and hunting up information. I've only just today completed the draft for proofing. Unfortunately, this job, along with many of my others, is unpaid.

My solar panels were finally installed and I am now generating power and putting some back into the grid. The exercise wasn't without some drama, with the property losing power twice because the crew managed to dislocate a wire, then after that was fixed the washing machine blew up and shorted out fuses that turned out to be old (over 30 years) and needed replacing. As did the washing machine! I've been here 10 years this month, and all my white goods and kitchen appliances are therefore 10 years old, so I guess I can expect more breakdowns. I've noticed as the years go by that these goods don't last much longer than 10 years. When I went to Perth in 1987/88 I bought a second hand twin tub washer for $130. When I left Perth 11-12 years later, in 1999, I sold that same machine, which was still going strong, for $100. They sure don't make them like they used to.

This month's dinner (with the dinner group I belong to) was a new experience for me - a degustation at Veraisons in Toowoomba. We were greeted with a glass of champagne, then sat down to 5 courses, each accompanied by a wine to complement the food. The servings were small but eaten over 2 hours, with our waiter describing the food, its preparation and all about the wine as we ate. Because I had to drive I was only able to take a sip of each wine, but enjoyed the experience all the same.

The weather is cooling down here now. I quite like autumn, probably more than spring, because at least I have some nice cool weather to look forward to. Although this year we didn't seem to have much of a summer at all. I was very industrious (before I broke the bone in my foot) and began to prune the bushes in my gardens, managing to get a few done without attacks from insects. Thanks to my brother, the garden is really filling out now and looking good. He also takes care of the vegetable gardens, which have to be prepared now for the winter plantings.

More next month.