Birthday Bash

Josie & Michael

A number of my wonderful friends gathered to celebrate my birthday. A treat to be able to do that after all these years in retail. The weather stayed fine, if somewhat blowy, the Southerly came in just as it was getting dark. There were fireworks over in Darling Harbour which impressed us all! But we had plenty of food, raised some money for the people of Timor L'Este, and had a relaxing time.



Singing Christmas Carols. Anzac Bridge behind us

Another Advent Calendar

Here is a spiritual Advent calendar
This one is taken from Daybreaks by Fr. Ron Rolheiser & is available as an MP3 file

Advent Calendar

My clever friend Robert has created an Advent Calendar. Enjoy it!

Nestle up to old tricks

Those who know me well , know that I boycott Nestle products. Have done since they peddled formula milk to Mothers in developing countries. Well thay have not improved on that front as much as they would like us to believe & now they are poisoning babies in Italy. Let's hear it for the forest rangers of Milan!

Sculpture by the Sea

I have wanted to get to Sculpture by the Sea for years & never managed to make it. Today, Ingrid & I went, the last day for viewing. A cloudy, overcast day, but mild, several hundred people , children & dogs but a pleasant outing! The second image is one of nature's sculptures!

Busy with assignments

I have been flat out writing assignments for my Masters, which is why I have not been posting , but check this great link to become a South Park character!.Yeah, maybe I am too old for this sort of thing, but I just keep thinking of the learning opportunities in all this stuff.
My current group of students are having a great time learning how to use a computer, many of them had never touched one till 2 weeks ago. If I can get them to particiapte in a blog before the end of semester I will be thrilled. I started 2 blogs going at uni this semester with my fellow students so that was a buzz. I love embedding learning in other learning , people enjoy learning new skills!

Some more photos from the holiday

The holiday is well and truly over now, Michael is keen to try holidaying again!

Some more photos

We went to Byron Bay. I was very disappointed in it, it is such a cliche! But it does have a good lighthouse!

Holidays!

We have just returned from a few days away at Coff's Harbour. Good weather and lots to see & do. First holiday together in 5 1/2 years since we went to England for a wedding!
So..we both had colds.
These photos were taken at the Seikh Temple at Woolgoolga. More to follow soon.

Flemington Markets

About every 2 or 3 weeks we go to the markets to buy our fruit & vegies at bargain prices at the Flemington Markets. On this occasion, Michael & Soooz had matching tops. They made such a lovely pair!

The Kookaburra sits on the old gum tree

We have had a couple of pairs of kookaburras in the neighbourhood recently, they raise a racket & they chase off all the other birds from our garden, but I think they have found somewhere to nest now, perhaps in the local park?

Wedding anniversary

Well we have laughed, struggled, complained and ached our way through nine years of married bliss, confusion and joy. But last night we celebrated with some friends, Kazbah & Sooz. Unusual for us as we are not big into celebrations but it was a pleasant meal at a Greek restaurant near and we returned home with tummies fit to burst with souvlakia, taramasalata and Greek salads.
We had ran away to get married......in upstate New York in a delightful little town on the Hudson river , where we stayed with Michael's sister & her family. Her husband married us, he is an Episcopalian Minister. The reception comprised store bought chickens & home made salads, a cake from PriceChoppers, chosen because of the green & gold iced flowers (it was not a wedding cake) and a crowd of Susie's friends. Being September the weather was hot in the morning & a thunderstorm got underway just as we were entering the church at 4pm. The next day we trooped around Stan's Flea market where many a bargain antiquity is to be found. Then we caught the Greyhound bus to Boston for a couple of days. It was a wonderful time!

Blog renewal

I have decided to revive Elizabeth's blog (happysinger) and use it as an online diary. It seems relevant given that we are now in a new phase of life & seem to be doing so much more.
A couple of Saturday's ago we went to see "Stuff Happens". It was long, but engaging. Worth mentioning here because it is unheard of for M & I to attend something together on a Saturday afternoon. But that will change now, I am pleased to say!
Then last Friday we went to the ABC Gardening show. I have not seen this show since the first time it was held, I must say although I enjoyed it , I found it less satisfying than the first time. Then there had been lots of wonderful displays of things you only read about, lots of permaculture , mail order seed companies & the like. Although permaculture was represented this time, it seemed to me that the show was more like a huge nursery product/hardware store ie a lot more commercial. Maybe smaller companies can no longer afford to exhibit there which is a pity. Still TAFE was there!