Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Swine fever

Today I had my annual flu injection but nearly had to pay for it. I was supposed to replace the serum Iused but when the pharmacist tried to charge me I complained that I was over 'a certain age' when, of course, it is free - one of the few benefits of getting older - from the government. The pharmacist was trying to be helpful, telling me to drink orange juice (gives me hives) and take echinacea, which, from memory isn't the best thing for me either. I've never had a reaction to the flu vaccine so I assume that it will be no different this time. I can't imagine what a combination of echinacea and orange juice would do to me ...

The news is full of the 'pandemic' caused by the swine flu with the media giving it a great deal of air time. I'm not sure if it is a ploy to make us think that there is something worse than a few hundred refugees arriving in small boats, with our fearless leader telling us not to panic and that the government is doing everything to prevent it getting into Australia. I believe that seven people have been diagnosed with it here already. At least it seems to be killing (in Mexico only at this stage) the young and fit, which lets me out.

[message to self - go for a morning walk along the sea front and breathe in all that ozone].

Friday, April 24, 2009

Troublesome cats ...

This morning I was woken up at 4.05am by the sound of girl-cat up-chucking on the Persian rug in my bedroom. Not at all amused, I staggered up, chased her outside with (I confess) a toe up her butt and proceeded to clean up the mess.

This cat is obviously one who maintains a grudge; when I arrived home after doing some shopping today I found that she had very neatly thrown up on the rubber thongs which I keep on the front veranda. Nowhere else ... just on, and exactly on, my thongs.

No word from the RAC person dealing with Himself's International license so either his letter has arrived or everyone has given up and gone about their business.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Today was only a two-star day

Today was 'one of those days'. Thursday is Computer Lounge day and I had assumed that I would be having the same clients as last week since they usually book for four straight weeks; but no! I had three new clients and the last one for the day, whom I actually did see last week, cancelled. So I got off an hour early.

Himself asked me to chase up his International Drivers' License progress but the RAC was all full up and I had to leave a message with a robot. The person I needed to speak to has phoned back but hasn't received the paperwork so nothing can be done at this stage. She will phone again tomorrow to let me know if the paperwork has arrived but it was sent last Friday, express mail.

I tried to phone my stockbroker but was faced with another robot - this one expendable as the rest of the staff were doing a fire drill. He will check on my problems and get back to me tomorrow.

Tomorrow Rosemary2 is coming to coffee so I'll probably roll up the Persian and make a cake. I don't want cake crumbs on the Persian ...

Sunday, April 19, 2009

Today I washed the cars ...

... so now they LOOK respectable even though they are living together.

Friday, April 17, 2009

This is the backlog from my previous blog

1. First entry ...

Three weeks today since I had surgery and I am only just starting to feel the real niggles and the peripheral pain. This is probably partly due to
lack of exercise and lack of stretching.
I am not allowed to do more than short, stressless walks, not allowed to drive a car and not allowed to do more than gentle housework, i.e.
cooking and sweeping. I am wondering if ironing is allowed because I will start to run out of things to wear by the weekend.
However, the surgery, hopefully, has been a success in which case all the grief will be worth it.
This entry is very boring and nothing much is going to happen within the next three weeks; sorry about that ...
Posted: 1:49 PM, 25/3/2009

2. I'm feeling almost normal today

I began converting my vinyl records to CD today, starting with my Scott Joplin records. I managed to record the second side of The RedBack
Book before the first side which doesn't matter at all but will probably do it again and get it right; I have plenty of blank CDs.
The Real Estate agent from Caporn Young phoned me this evening 'just to keep in touch'. That is OK ... I'll probably let him sell my house.
The stock market seems to be looking up although I expect some more bounces before it settles. Fingers crossed it is over the worst.
Posted: 9:54 PM, 26/3/2009

3. OMG !!

I never thought that I'd enjoy doing the ironing but after almost four weeks of enforced inactivity is is nice to be
a) doing something physical,
b) doing something meaningful.
I am happily prepared to take all day over it if needs by, doing a few garments at a time and then taking a rest break. My ironing is accompanied
by Scott Joplin rags which, thanks to a magic gadget lent to me by Himself , I have copied from vinyl to CD. I have tried to do the right thing and
buy the CDs but obviously Scott Joplin will not get any air space until they do a remake of The Entertainer.
The day before yesterday, Friday, we had our regular Lotto lunch. As I can't drive yet I was picked up and dropped back by Max The Toenail who
doesn't work on Fridays anymore and, morover, who's work ethic has been ground down by government bureaucracy and who doesn't really care
much one way or other and is quite prepared to take a long lunch if it suits him.
Yesterday the grandbabies and their parents arrived for a very late morning tea and tomorrow I am having lunch with daughter No.2 so I am
having quite a busy social live after all.
My friend Himself and his wife, Herself, married off their daughter yesterday in Wales. I hope that the couple will be very happy and that the
weather was good; I braided my hair for good weather but it doesn't always work ...
Posted: 12:03 PM, 29/3/2009

4. So much for braiding my hair

The weather for the wedding in Wales was cold with occasional signs of sleet. Since then it has been sunny and warm. Sod's Law, of course.
Posted: 11:53 AM, 31/3/2009

5. All is well with my surgery

I saw the surgeon today and everything is as it should be but he told me that, as the surgery was so complex, he wants to see me again in six
months. Hopefully, things will still be as they should be; I've certainly noticed a difference.
I have talked to Second-Wife about having a picture painted of Boy Cat. Boissevain is now in his eighties and if I leave it for too long it might be
too late and I would regret it. I can't really afford it - or that is the way I feel - but it is something which I feel that I need to do. I have been busy
trying to print off photographs and get the colours right ... not easy. I have ended up with one which I printed as a trial on a piece of scrap paper.
The colours are correct for the Boy and hopefully Boissevain can fit him onto the chair. Maybe I can get a better photo of him before the end of
Easter but he is not very co-operative and I'd rather have a picture of him when he was in his prime. Oh, well!
Posted: 8:54 PM, 9/4/2009

6. Back to normal; back to COTA

At last I am allowed to drive and 'resume all normal activities'.
I have washed the kitchen floor, vacuumed about half the house, done the ironing and yesterday I put in a full day teaching at the computer lounge
at COTA. I never thought that I would enjoy housework but it needs doing and I am enjoying the exercise if not the means.
I was going to take Himself's car for a drive today but the windscreen is so dusty that I couldn't see thorugh it very well and decided to use my own
car instead. However, I backed Himself's car out onto the verge and back into the carport so that should keep it ticking over for a bit. I think that
Himself and Herself will be home again in four weeks, albeit they will be off again to the Eastern States shortly afterwards so I am not sure what
arrangements they are making as regards the dog, the cars and the housesitters.
I had a word with Second-Wife and she is going to ask Willem Boissevain to paint a matching portrait of Boy-Cat. I dropped in some photos of
him and now I just have to wait for my painting. He is into painting wild animals at the moment ... not sure that Boy-Cat qualifies but I am assured
that he will do it anyway.
Second-Wife has also offered to help me sort and hang my pictures when I move into the apartment in a couple of years and I have gratefully
accepted her offer. Looking at the plan, there isn't a lot of wall space as the whole of the South side seems to be glass. However, using a Art
Gallery system I can put them up without having to make holes in the walls, thus maximising the space and enabling me to move them around.
Posted: 6:40 PM, 17/4/2009


7. OMG 2 !!!!

I wrote a letter to the West Australian Newspaper today regarding the explosion on the latest refugee boat and Kevin Rudd's comments about
people smugglers.I have just had to confirm to the West Australian that I am actually the author of the letter so perhaps they are going to print it and perhaps it is a
little controversial?????

Here it is:

"I can see a perfect win/win situation for a lot of people in my solution to the problem of people smugglers. Perhaps the Federal Government could lease some planes from Qantas and fly all the asylum seekers directly from Indonesia to Christmas
Island. This solution would put the people smugglers out of business, ensure that asylum seekers are safe during their journey to Christmas Island, prop
up Qantas' falling profits, save the government the cost of border controls and give Kevin Rudd some wonderful photo opportunities as he
welcomes plane-load after plane-load of would-be refugees to Australia. Cynically yours - "

Introduction to my blog

I will copy and paste the entries I made on my previous blog which I have discovered is not open to my family unless they actually join. I know that they will not do this so I am hopefully now at a blog which they will be able to access.