(*) A weeks' worth in one post...
Well, it sure feels like it... thinking about it, it IS! More than a weeks' worth.
After having been told 'no' once already, I was able to see the boys on Tuesday, when we went to the movies together to see "Garfiled." Good fun family film - Sebbie has the most captivatingly cute laugh that made everyone else in the darkness giggle along with him! Very cute! It was a little weird, as the boys' mum (I really shouldn't call her 'my ex' - that's such a negative sounding expression, you know...) came along with us! At first I felt a bit cramped with her being there, but after a minute or so the boys and I were having fun and chatting and swapping silly one-liners like we always do - just enjoying being together. I could tell she was a bit annoyed at first, but then she relaxed too, and a good time was had by all. When Alex hugs me, his arms clasped around my neck, it's like being filled with a trillion litres of cool refreshing water to my parched dry soul!
Afterwards I went for a bit of a walk - the sun was glorious as it hit the western horizon. I admit I was a bit naughty and bounced into the (I was going to say 'record' store... now that's showing my age! pmsl!) CD shop, and to my amazement saw The Beatles Anthology 2 double CD at $10 off the normal price! I assumed it was a price-ticketing mistake, but - noope! So, that's been most of my soundtrack for this week. I went for a walk along the riverbank parklands in the glowing evening air, watching the water rush past through its' endless search for the lowest ground. It's lovely down there, and with a bit of rain, there's actually good water in there! I suppose to someone who's used to a 'real' river, the McQuarie River here is more-or-less a large creek at this point! Then my right knee gave a twinge (which it hasn't done in over a year), and I had to hobble the 1km+ home - D'oh!
The week before I stumbled past the DVD store (just down from the 'record shop'), and I couldn't believe my eyes to see 'Dances With Wolves' for only $8.50! I grabbed it - it's one of my favs - just the whole spectacle of it helps me feel refreshed. The storyline is convoluted, sure, but the ending leaves a dry knot in your throat. Heck - we did the exact same thing to the Australian Aboriginals! As I went to pay for that, out of the corner of my eye I spotted something else... 'Monty Python and the Holy Grail' was on special as well... I couldn't resist. I hadn't watched that classic in years - I think the last time was late one right with Mr Raven in Brisbane! Can't remember the time before that... Plus it's got all these bonus features, you know... Pythons - always good for some helpful absurdity! So now, even my DVD collection is slowly growing!
It's been so dry lately, so two huge rainstorms in a week have been a huge bonus. It's still an almost bedwetting experience to see the flash of lightening and a split-second later feel the BANG explode right on top of you - especially in the middle of the night! Sheesh! The upside has been that the gardens here have taken off without much prompting. I've kind-of become the default gardener of the townhouses (as the old lady who used to do it had moved on), so I've been slowly pottering here and there along the garden beds along the 100 meter driveway tidying things up and pulling the occasional weed etc, and keeping it all watered (a sprinkler system helps see to that). Otherwise it'd just dry off and die away, like it did at the end of last summer. There's so many flowering plants and shrubs along the long driveway - it's very pretty, really. Plus the postage-stamp backyard of my place has enjoyed the rain as well - the whipper snipper has needed a fresh change of twine to get its' job done this week! Good health rainfall, then about 5 days of glorious sunshine... if only it would always be like this for the rest of summer... not for me or this place, but for the poor farmers who are battling to grow crops or feed stock with no feed and no water in their dams.
Last Sunday (like 2 Sundays' ago now...), I was feeling absolutely claustrophobic stuck at home on such a gloriously sunny day. My flatmate allows me to borrow her ute whenever she's not using it, so i thought I'd go for a bit of a 'Sunday Drive in the Country' for a change. I just headed south with no real idea of where I was going to go. All I knew was that getting out of the house was a huge priority. Plus, not having a car of my own limits my ability to go anywhere at a distance on my own anymore. After a few hours, I realised I'd clocked-up 100km very easily. Gorman's Hill - The Lagoon - Chifley Dam - O'Connell - Loxley - Brewongle and home again. The countryside was amazingly green! It is the best time of year to see the place at the moment - we've had some good rains, and everything looks so lush and green. But, don't be fooled - we're still in drought here. In a few weeks, the hotter weather will dry-off all that greenery, and it'll be brown, dry and dusty again in no time. So, it was great to see the beautiful rolling countryside around here looking so revitalised. There were many times I was driving, and overlooking some pretty little valley or the side of a hill, that I'd have to stop to draw breath, just to soak it all in. I hadn't been out that way for about 3+ years, so it really was like a fine tonic to be out in the peaceful freedom around here again. I know it sounds silly, but I don't get to have long quiet drives very often anymore, so it was like a trip into timelessness for the afternoon.
The annual Mt Panorama V8 1000 car race is this weekend this weekend. The population of this large rural town quadruples as people come all across Australia (and even O/S) to see this great race between arch-rivals Holden and Ford! In this town you are either a Holden man or a Ford man - whether you drive one or not! Last night in town they close off a whole street while hosting a free BBQ, as all the drivers have a free signing. People were lining up from before sunrise just to see Peter Brock! Bad craziness! There was people everywhere. I considered lining up for a signature or two (for the boys, mind you), but in the 20 minutes I was there the line hadn't even moved! Bugger that! Yesterday arvo after shopping, having borrowed my housemate's car, I drove up to the Mount (as us locals know it as). They've spent 500 billion dollars (or something like that) rebuilding all the pits facilities - looks good. Much better than the glorified tin sheds they used to have, that's for sure! I couldn't believe the amount of people up there already... the actual racing practise didn't start until this morning (Thursday), but there were people sitting along the hill and stands of Pitt Straight just watching things going on already! Talk about die-hards! The amount of bogans who camp atop the Mount has to be seen to be believed... it's like a hippy campout or something, 'cept far worse! They even have their own free shuttle bus to-and-from the Mount into town, so people can drink as much as they like and not have to drive. Hmmm... Firewood is at a premium around here come race weekend. A person who used to live up near the Mount a few years ago wondered where their wooden fence palings went to one night... D'oh! Mind you - the whole thing means zilch to me - whilst I have a mild passing interest if a Holden gets on top, car racing just isn't my cup of tea, you know. It's much easier to stay home than face the throng of interesting spectators atop the Mount - and far cheaper too! Just going to the shops yesterday was an interesting experience, watching obviously out-of-towners challenged by roundabouts and 50km/h speed limits! All the farking visitors think that everyone in this town drives like they're a race driver! Ggrrr!
Come tomorrow, when the V8's do their Top-10 Shootout race-thingy, I'll be able to hear the distant roar of their cars from this place, even though I live about 4+km's from the starting line! If you end up watching the race on telly on Sunday - that's where I live!
Walking home from the bemusement of the driver signing, I popped into one of my favourite little second-hand bookstores here in town. It's a worry when the lady owner knows you by sight and we can have a nice little conversation along the way! Anyway, it's always foolishness to walk into any bookshop with cash in my pocket... I walked out with a few dollars less and three books. "Angela's Ashes" by Frank McCourt (which I used to own and have no idea what happened to it...), plus two funny novels by a guy I first read in the early 80's, Tom Sharpe. He's the guy who made me laff thru "Blott on the Landscape" and the three "Wilt" books!
After having been told 'no' once already, I was able to see the boys on Tuesday, when we went to the movies together to see "Garfiled." Good fun family film - Sebbie has the most captivatingly cute laugh that made everyone else in the darkness giggle along with him! Very cute! It was a little weird, as the boys' mum (I really shouldn't call her 'my ex' - that's such a negative sounding expression, you know...) came along with us! At first I felt a bit cramped with her being there, but after a minute or so the boys and I were having fun and chatting and swapping silly one-liners like we always do - just enjoying being together. I could tell she was a bit annoyed at first, but then she relaxed too, and a good time was had by all. When Alex hugs me, his arms clasped around my neck, it's like being filled with a trillion litres of cool refreshing water to my parched dry soul!
Afterwards I went for a bit of a walk - the sun was glorious as it hit the western horizon. I admit I was a bit naughty and bounced into the (I was going to say 'record' store... now that's showing my age! pmsl!) CD shop, and to my amazement saw The Beatles Anthology 2 double CD at $10 off the normal price! I assumed it was a price-ticketing mistake, but - noope! So, that's been most of my soundtrack for this week. I went for a walk along the riverbank parklands in the glowing evening air, watching the water rush past through its' endless search for the lowest ground. It's lovely down there, and with a bit of rain, there's actually good water in there! I suppose to someone who's used to a 'real' river, the McQuarie River here is more-or-less a large creek at this point! Then my right knee gave a twinge (which it hasn't done in over a year), and I had to hobble the 1km+ home - D'oh!
The week before I stumbled past the DVD store (just down from the 'record shop'), and I couldn't believe my eyes to see 'Dances With Wolves' for only $8.50! I grabbed it - it's one of my favs - just the whole spectacle of it helps me feel refreshed. The storyline is convoluted, sure, but the ending leaves a dry knot in your throat. Heck - we did the exact same thing to the Australian Aboriginals! As I went to pay for that, out of the corner of my eye I spotted something else... 'Monty Python and the Holy Grail' was on special as well... I couldn't resist. I hadn't watched that classic in years - I think the last time was late one right with Mr Raven in Brisbane! Can't remember the time before that... Plus it's got all these bonus features, you know... Pythons - always good for some helpful absurdity! So now, even my DVD collection is slowly growing!
It's been so dry lately, so two huge rainstorms in a week have been a huge bonus. It's still an almost bedwetting experience to see the flash of lightening and a split-second later feel the BANG explode right on top of you - especially in the middle of the night! Sheesh! The upside has been that the gardens here have taken off without much prompting. I've kind-of become the default gardener of the townhouses (as the old lady who used to do it had moved on), so I've been slowly pottering here and there along the garden beds along the 100 meter driveway tidying things up and pulling the occasional weed etc, and keeping it all watered (a sprinkler system helps see to that). Otherwise it'd just dry off and die away, like it did at the end of last summer. There's so many flowering plants and shrubs along the long driveway - it's very pretty, really. Plus the postage-stamp backyard of my place has enjoyed the rain as well - the whipper snipper has needed a fresh change of twine to get its' job done this week! Good health rainfall, then about 5 days of glorious sunshine... if only it would always be like this for the rest of summer... not for me or this place, but for the poor farmers who are battling to grow crops or feed stock with no feed and no water in their dams.
Last Sunday (like 2 Sundays' ago now...), I was feeling absolutely claustrophobic stuck at home on such a gloriously sunny day. My flatmate allows me to borrow her ute whenever she's not using it, so i thought I'd go for a bit of a 'Sunday Drive in the Country' for a change. I just headed south with no real idea of where I was going to go. All I knew was that getting out of the house was a huge priority. Plus, not having a car of my own limits my ability to go anywhere at a distance on my own anymore. After a few hours, I realised I'd clocked-up 100km very easily. Gorman's Hill - The Lagoon - Chifley Dam - O'Connell - Loxley - Brewongle and home again. The countryside was amazingly green! It is the best time of year to see the place at the moment - we've had some good rains, and everything looks so lush and green. But, don't be fooled - we're still in drought here. In a few weeks, the hotter weather will dry-off all that greenery, and it'll be brown, dry and dusty again in no time. So, it was great to see the beautiful rolling countryside around here looking so revitalised. There were many times I was driving, and overlooking some pretty little valley or the side of a hill, that I'd have to stop to draw breath, just to soak it all in. I hadn't been out that way for about 3+ years, so it really was like a fine tonic to be out in the peaceful freedom around here again. I know it sounds silly, but I don't get to have long quiet drives very often anymore, so it was like a trip into timelessness for the afternoon.
The annual Mt Panorama V8 1000 car race is this weekend this weekend. The population of this large rural town quadruples as people come all across Australia (and even O/S) to see this great race between arch-rivals Holden and Ford! In this town you are either a Holden man or a Ford man - whether you drive one or not! Last night in town they close off a whole street while hosting a free BBQ, as all the drivers have a free signing. People were lining up from before sunrise just to see Peter Brock! Bad craziness! There was people everywhere. I considered lining up for a signature or two (for the boys, mind you), but in the 20 minutes I was there the line hadn't even moved! Bugger that! Yesterday arvo after shopping, having borrowed my housemate's car, I drove up to the Mount (as us locals know it as). They've spent 500 billion dollars (or something like that) rebuilding all the pits facilities - looks good. Much better than the glorified tin sheds they used to have, that's for sure! I couldn't believe the amount of people up there already... the actual racing practise didn't start until this morning (Thursday), but there were people sitting along the hill and stands of Pitt Straight just watching things going on already! Talk about die-hards! The amount of bogans who camp atop the Mount has to be seen to be believed... it's like a hippy campout or something, 'cept far worse! They even have their own free shuttle bus to-and-from the Mount into town, so people can drink as much as they like and not have to drive. Hmmm... Firewood is at a premium around here come race weekend. A person who used to live up near the Mount a few years ago wondered where their wooden fence palings went to one night... D'oh! Mind you - the whole thing means zilch to me - whilst I have a mild passing interest if a Holden gets on top, car racing just isn't my cup of tea, you know. It's much easier to stay home than face the throng of interesting spectators atop the Mount - and far cheaper too! Just going to the shops yesterday was an interesting experience, watching obviously out-of-towners challenged by roundabouts and 50km/h speed limits! All the farking visitors think that everyone in this town drives like they're a race driver! Ggrrr!
Come tomorrow, when the V8's do their Top-10 Shootout race-thingy, I'll be able to hear the distant roar of their cars from this place, even though I live about 4+km's from the starting line! If you end up watching the race on telly on Sunday - that's where I live!
Walking home from the bemusement of the driver signing, I popped into one of my favourite little second-hand bookstores here in town. It's a worry when the lady owner knows you by sight and we can have a nice little conversation along the way! Anyway, it's always foolishness to walk into any bookshop with cash in my pocket... I walked out with a few dollars less and three books. "Angela's Ashes" by Frank McCourt (which I used to own and have no idea what happened to it...), plus two funny novels by a guy I first read in the early 80's, Tom Sharpe. He's the guy who made me laff thru "Blott on the Landscape" and the three "Wilt" books!
On This Day...
Born: Heinrich Himmler (Nazi, 1900); John Cougar Mellencamp (singer with an identity crisis, 1951).
Died: Edgar Allen Poe (writer, 1849); Mario Lanza (singer, 1959).
Events: Janis Joplin cremated 1970.
Useless Trivia: Poll (1970): Worst Household task - dishwashing (17.0%)
My Soundtrack: The Goon Show - The Lurgi...
Mal (ie. Mallard the Quackers) :o)
"If we see light at the end of the tunnel, it's the light of the oncoming train." (Robert Lowell)
"The Lord survives the rainbow of His will." (Robert Lowell)
posted by Mallard at 7.10.04
Online Blog Diary of the Malster - with some of my Thoughts, Ideas, Comments, Observations, Editorials, Musings, Rantings, Ravings and Current Objective Critical Relative Subjectivism of Maljam the Loopey Mallard ... lol
1 Comments:
nice to see a long catch up post! i will forever call them record stores! i still borrow dvds from the video shop... i love 2nd hand book stores and i totally agree with you about the danger of entering one, even without cash - my two locals accept eftpos and credit cards! one of them is perfect - if i go in there looking for a specific book, i always find it! your sunday drive sounds soooo nice. it has been about 6 years since i've have a nice country meander.
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