In good company

In spite of thinking I have a moratorium on buying books, I slip up now and then, and the other day came home with this (second hand):

I read 'Resurrection' a few weeks back and was very taken with Tolstoy's writing - not surprising, as he is one of the greatest writers of all time - and this led me to ask Mr Google lots of things about Russian history, architecture, clothes, etc.  Fortunately, my Russian friend Olga - where are you??? - was a great help, especially with names.  (He has a descendant who is a famous singer, Viktoria Tolstoy, living in Sweden - a nice little bit of trivia for you.)  'Anna Karenina' is an all-time favourite of mine and I don't think I ever finished 'War and Peace', but am sure I enjoyed as much as I read.


Three doors down, there is a sign on the gate:  Russian Playgroup, and I read in the paper this week that there is now a Russian community centre/Saturday morning school a few suburbs away.  I am tempted to learn the language but that, of course, would be simply stupid, as I really need to get on with my Japanese.


This brings me to the point of today's blog - I learnt in the above book that Tolstoy was a great list maker and constantly fell short of the things he was trying to achieve.  That's ME all over!!!  I have so many things on my lists that sometimes I do nothing because I find it  overwhelming and don't know where to start.  Today is going to be one of those days, I can tell...


The only thing I never fail to do is make my morning coffee and spend about two hours drinking it before I can get my brain into gear.  Lately I've been playing the piano most days, while neglecting everything else.


Post Script:  Olga just emailed, so that is a relief!  She's been to Japan with her husband since we last communicated and has wonderful things to say about the trip.

Yes, it was a lovely day on Sunday

It is wonderful having young friends!!!  I can't imagine why they go out with an old biddy like me, but I feel very special when I'm with Lina, Therese and Angela.  And talk about useful - I don't know what I'd do without all the help Lina gives me on the computer!!!  And after the fete, she and Therese showed me how to use one of those photo printing gadgets.  (I'd always printed my own photos at home, and was very nervous attempting to use one in a shop.  Now that I know how easy it is - and cheap - I'll be printing photos every day!)


This is what I bought at the fete, Winifred - a present for my sore hand which is now better.  I never wear rings, so maybe this is my second childhood!

I stopped buying Christmas presents years ago - except for the grandchildren and the odd friend who insists on giving me something - and used to give money to a charity to buy a goat for a village or something like that, but this year I don't even think I'll do that.  At the end of last year I was so overwhelmed by the mail and phone calls from charities that I got very annoyed and crossed them all off my direct debit list, and now just drop their begging letters in the bin. Once they get your name and address, they cling on like a terrier and I resent that.  Oh dear, I'm sounding like an old grouch, aren't I!

Christmas Fete today at Eryldene

Stand sideways and you'll look thinner!  We all did, but I don't dare include the others on the blog - not cropping was more than my life is worth.  Mind you, I'm old enough to be the mother of Lina and her two friends whom I accompanied to the fete, so what do they have to worry about???

There were more than 50 stalls with wonderful Christmas goodies...

Some of the garden at Eryldene, a National Trust property, just up the road from Lina's place.

View from the front.


Yesterday morning it was pouring rain and we thought there was little chance of seeing the sun ever again, but it appeared in the afternoon and today dawned bright and clear.  The temperature was 26 degrees.


I have to tell you I got all four photos in at once, which I thought very clever.  However,  they are in reverse order.  Nobody's perfect.  I actually tried to get five in - here's the one that missed out:

Bird call

Truly, the internet is mind-boggling!  Look what I've come across - you can not only get pictures of birds, but hear their calls:  

http://birdsinbackyards.net/images/audio/eudynamys-scolopacea.mp3

In Newcastle I only ever knew this bird sound as belonging to a storm bird, but Mr Google tells me it is actually called a common koel and this is a pic of a female.  I've never managed to see either a male or female, but know they're about as they call all day long. 


Thanks for your suggestion about youtube, Winifred - I'll certainly try that!

I don't ever remember Sydney looking so beautiful...

This is the fifth attempt at getting a jacaranda picture in here!  I didn't take it myself, but chose it from the many glorious pics on Google images.

No need for words.

To the theatre

A week or two ago, on a sunny Sunday afternoon, I went to this inner-city suburb of Darlinghurst (walking distance from CBD) to meet Newcastle friends, whose daughter was in a play in this very street.

Her name is Letitia Sutherland and this pic was taken when she was in a play with students from Edinburgh University.  She is really a wonderful actress.  (As you will have noticed, I don't usually put pics of people on my blog, but this is on Letitia's website and is a publicity shot, so I feel I am permitted to use this one.)


I have to admit I didn't put the street photos in at the time because I couldn't find them in Picasa, which plays the naughtiest tricks on me!  But, just now, while I was looking for something else, they popped up!

Oh dear

By Sunday morning the scraped areas at the bottom of my right hand were oozing pus and my shoulder was stiff and painful.  Philip took me to the chemist, who suggested I see a doctor and told us where to find one open on Sundays.  The doctor asked me why I hadn't gone to her yesterday, but I hadn't thought a few scrapes warranted that (even though I was feeling very sorry for myself).  Apparently an oozing wound can lead to a more dangerous infection.  I'm now well-bandaged, as you can see, and on antibiotics, and after my daughter-in-law's sister, a naturopath, gave me a treatment with a strange Russian gadget like a shaver, the name of which escapes me, I have almost normal movement back in my shoulder.


I managed to take this pic with one hand, thinking as I did of a young woman featured in a TV program after she lost BOTH arms in a terrible tractor accident.  Can you imagine anything like it? Her wonderful husband was looking after her and I hope he continues to do so.


I will attempt to back the car up the drive in a while and go to my exercise class.


Winifred, you can google absolutely anything and click on 'Images' (top left) and find any photo, drawing or cartoon you want!  That's how I found yesterday's pic (though I fell face-down not feet up as shown!!!)  And of course, I know what you mean about children - grown or otherwise - doing as we want them to!

Another surprise

Oh dear, this morning I hadn't got far on my walk when I tripped over!  I sprawled heavily onto some very rough tar beside the road, skinning one knee and two hands and jerking my shoulder. I bled profusely and started to cry and a kind bike-rider came to help me up and see if I needed any more assistance.  I hobbled home and rang the front door bell.  A very surprised Philip opened the door to a frightening sight!

Eight hours later the grazes are still stinging and I can barely raise my right arm.  I've spent the day reading one of John Mortimer's books and have been laughing my head off.

Winifred, please make sure your Philip makes contact with me as we must meet, if only for a short time, during his hectic visit to Sydney.

Life is full of surprises!

Right out of the blue I flew to Melbourne (Qantas) early Monday morning and returned Tuesday evening (JetStar)!  Through a teacher friend I'd come across an amazing woman called Liz Dunoon, who's published a book called Helping Children with Dyslexia (with a foreword by Sir Richard Branson, no less!!!!).  She'd checked out my Sounds of Reading website and rang and invited me down (at her expense) to stay overnight at her place.  We talked about reading non-stop and exchanged lots of ideas, which was wonderful.


I found the do-it-yourself online ticketing a bit frazzling, but Lina came to the rescue and calmed me down.  I left my car at her place and she caught the before-6am train with me into the city and put me on the airport train.  Both flights said they were leaving from and arriving at international terminals, which wasn't true - they just do that to amuse themselves, I think, and force potential travellers to waste hours online and making phone calls.


In fact, I think I spent more time online getting the tickets than the actual flight, which is only a bit over an hour (if you don't count a long delay because there was some muckup with baggage and a holding-pattern, waiting for our turn to land).  It took two hours to get from the airport home!!!!

So beautiful...

These winter berries arrived from the northern hemisphere just minutes ago.  Computers are as amazing as they are frustrating!!!!  Imagine my being able to see the view out the front of your place, Winifred, from my desk on the other side of the world!!!!!!!  Thanks for sending.


I'm glad you like my rug, Lina.  I'd better vacuum it and the rest of the place now.

So tired today...

I think I'll just lie on the sofa and gaze at my new Persian rug.  (Maybe the design is Persian-inspired, but it was made in Belgium from man-made silk, in other words, viscose!)  Whatever - it is very soft and Muffy, Emma and Hugo all like crawling/rolling all over it.


Yesterday I drove what seemed like halfway to Melbourne to pick up the microwave/convection oven that never worked.  It is VERY stressful in three-lane traffic, 110 km there and back. Manami and Hugo came too and he cried all the way there.  We also went to a new Ikea shop to buy some curtain material for upstairs.  I'm far too tired to try the oven out today and will be most surprised if it does actually cook anything.  I have no faith in warranties from big companies.  If the service company had come to collect it, I would have had to pay $85 (each way).


I hope the dentist didn't hurt you too much, Winifred.  Re the school fete - I was expecting just a few stalls, too, and was most intimidated by commercial ferris wheels, etc, all with blasting music.  It was almost impossible to bear, especially in 30 degree heat.  The teapot and cup thingo was lovely, and at quite a distance from the noise, but it was too hot to try anything else.

Oh, I do love Sydney!

Walking round the local suburbs is sheer joy!  Lina and I took Emma to a school fete the other day and she enjoyed a ride in a cup.  The top pic is one of my favourite streeets and the bottom one is my favourite shopping centre (where I frequently go for a coffee and French pastry).

Honestly! I get so frustrated...

It's not fair that some people (you, Michael) are so clever and others (me) are so dumb!!!  This wouldn't work for me yesterday but today it does, because you've sent it again.  To make things worse, yesterday while I was struggling for hours to order Emma's piano books (and still haven't figured out how to do it), Philip had taken the day off work and was upstairs!!!!  I was livid when I found out, and told him I needed help to order his daughter's books, but he blithely ignored me - his normal reaction - and I haven't seen him since.  Grrrrrr.


I've just tried to open your blog, Winifred, from the link you gave me and it tells me the very same link does not match any documents!!!!!!!!!!!  There are definitely gremlins in this pc.  And, as I write, a message has popped up telling me it's going to restart in 25 secs.


Later.  I finished my coffee and sat in the living room listening to a mostly Mozart concert, which is very calming. (I'm playing the piano again, after a break of some months.  Still at grade 1, but the theory is slowing sinking in.)


I'm glad you thought my description of the football was funny, Winifred, as I think it's a pretty funny game!!!!  The players must have a very high frustration tolerance, is all I can say.  And don't mention cricket, as to me that is even more of a mystery, but much gentler on the players, as they don't attack each other.


Muffy does have a way of telling me what she wants for breakfast - if it's dry stuff, she miaows loudly and if it's moist, she bites my feet!

Might as well stay grumpy all day

Had a bad day yesterday and things haven't improved!  Yesterday I cut out a dress for Emma before I realised the pattern was far too small, so might just as well throw it in the bin.  This morning I started off trying to do an Amazon order for two piano books for her and I'm blowed if I can do it!!!!!!!!!!!  Book #1 is fine, but, no matter how long I search, I can't figure out how to order #2.  (I had already completed a long list with Allegro Music Online, only to find out at the very last question they don't deliver to Australia.)  And there doesn't seem to be a shop in Sydney that stocks these books.  Just now I got your email, Michael, and in spite of the fact you made it easy for me to put in the blog, it won't work!!!!!!!!!!!  I can only import images, it seems. (But I'm sure you'd be able to do it.)

Yes Winifred, Lina and I had a really enjoyable day in Glebe.  She's like a daugher to me - I'm older than her mother!  And yes Frank, Anna Funder got her idea for All That I Am from the former East Germany.

I forgot to tell both of you sport-lovers that the other night I actually watched the rugby final in NZ, believe it or not!  Mind you, I would call it wrestling or all fall down.  What funny rules they have - you run two metres holding the ball, wrestle somebody who tries to grab it from you, fall down together, then everybody in the whole team falls on top of you in a heap!!!!!  I looked up the dictionary to see whether it was league or union, and read that one team has 13 players and the other 15, but every time I tried to count they'd do a close-up shot before I'd got to the end!  (Somebody told me later it's union.  I think we call soccer, league, union and Australian rules football here in Australia.)

I just responded to Muffy's demand for breakfast.  Last week the vet told me she's getting too fat, so I should cut back the amount of food I give her.  She's on a special diet for her bladder, and has both dry food in a packet and moist stuff in a tin.  This morning she wanted moist, so I tried to read the suggested amount on the label and of course the font is so small (about one quarter this size) which meant I was unable to read it.  (Thought I'd put this as another grumble for the day.)