A Pleasant Sunday On The Sunshine Coast

The day began with our visitors Barry and Rainy accompanying us to the traditional Sunday breakfast at the "Bowls Club". This breaky is guaranteed to get your day off to a great start and it also means you won't be hungry again that day!

After breakfast we headed to the Caloundra Main Street Market. There was quite a crowd and we had to make our way carefully through the street. There are now a lot of stalls, mainly set up to attract the tourist dollar. The ladies did buy wine glass coolers which happened to get a good try out later in the day! As you can see, there was quite a crowd.

From there we had our walk along the boardwalk beside the sea. This is always a pretty spot and a good chance to get some fresh air and a little exercise. It is also a chance to take some photos.

We arrived back home about lunchtime and settled in to watch even more sport on TV and enjoy a few drinks. It was a quiet introductory day for our visitors to life on the Sunshine Coast.

Visitors Arrive

The weather has remained more 'as we should expect' for this time of year with cool nights and sunny days. My chest cold has slowed us a little but that now seems to be on the improve.

When we first moved to our new home back in Victoria almost 30 years ago now, we became good friends with a young newly married couple Barry and Rainy who lived down the road. This friendship has held up over the years and it was great they decided to visit us here on the Sunshine Coast after flying up from Melbourne. I could not possibly guess the number of beers and glasses of wine we have all shared in the intervening years!

Barry and Rainy both enjoy their AFL footy so our first day was spent close to the TV and the beer fridge! A disastrous performance by Barry's Magpies was the only disappointing thing for the day! The recycling bin is almost full of empty stubbies though. Rainy has developed a taste for my "Black Ale" as this photo shows.

Two of the games we wanted to watch clashed with one being on Pay TV and the other on Free To Air. Because of our TV setup, the FTA covered match was Barry's and he was confined to watch the game in the bedroom. However as his Magpies fell further and further behind he decided to join the others in the lounge room watching Rainy's Sydney Swans cruise to victory.

I am sure we had too much to drink but we certainly had a great day!

Plenty Of Sunshine

We awoke to a beautiful sunny day with the temp expected to get to about 22 degrees or so. Not a cloud in the sky and more like the weather we should expect at this time of the year. Yesterday my chest cold did not improve at all as the day went on and by last night I was feeling a bit the worse for wear. However things seem to be better today, and morning like this certainly helps.

A month or so ago I received an email from a lady (Lou An) in West Texas who had stumbled across my blog page. Lou An discovered her computer in her mid 60' about 8 years ago and now really enjoys it and gets on the net and surfs most evenings. After successfully installing my webcam yesterday it was time to test it out via the free program "Skype". It was 8:30 pm Wednesday night her time when I contacted her (11:30 a.m. Thurs here). Skype is a free service and the possibilities are just incredible. Lou An posed for me on the other side of the world as I took this photo for the blog page.

The house next door has been sold and the new owners move in some time next week.

Tiger Airways have announced 3 flights per week from Melbourne (Tullamarine) to the Sunshine Coast. Introductory airfares from Dec 1 to Mar 29 have been set at $59-95 one way. I would expect the competition between the three local airlines will see each of them with great specials available.

What Has Been Happening.

The family across the road have a smallish house and four girls. They are a great family. Bill (the Dad) drives heavy machinery and with all the development going on here on the Sunshine Coast he works long hours and is well paid. They are extending their home. The former garage will become the new lounge while upstairs will be an en-suite, the master bedroom and storage. Without the roof fully on, Bill and family have really noticed the cold nights recently!

They have just returned from a 4 wheel drive trek up to "The Cape". The Cape is the northern most tip of Australia and some of the countryside you pass through is real Crocodile Country. The roads are pretty rough and there is plenty of Australian wildlife to get up close and comfy to. Actually they got a bit too close to a kangaroo which they hit in their 4WD. The car is in the panel beaters having the bonnet repaired and the kangaroo has gone 'to heaven'.

After a trip to the doctor's today for my chest cold and bad cough, I am on a staple of anti-cough syrup and anti-biotics. Hopefully I will be a lot better when our guests arrive about midday on Saturday to stay with us for a week. A slab of "Coldies" has been chilled and awaiting consumption. Red wine stocks have been replenished too! All we want now is for the weather to pick up. Today is about 20 or 21 with about 10 overnight last night.

I purchased a new Logitech webcam today and I am pleased to announce it works beautifully and the printer now works at the same time!

The house next door has been sold and the 'new' family will move in next week. In about 6 weeks time only the elderly father will be there as the rest are returning to Switzerland for a time.

Still Catching Up On Sleep

It seems to be taking us a few days to 'recover' from 3+ weeks in Melbourne and a 2000k drive back home. We are both still a little weary even after being home for a few days.

Some intermittent showers blowing in off the sea today. We received a couple of mls in the rain gauge overnight. At least the cloud keeps the nights a little warmer.

Normal winter weather is expected to return later this week with about 10 (55) overnight and low 20's (low 70's) during the day. And the sunshine should return! We have visitors arriving Saturday (Barry and Rainy) and staying with us for a week. The 'Waeco' portable refrigerator is fully loaded and chilling as I type!

I have added some movie clips of the grand children to the right under the heading "Rogue's Gallery". You will need to hit "Back" to return to this page.

Back On The Sunshine Coast

We arrived back home on Friday shortly after lunchtime. We stopped in West Wyalong and Goondiwindi both about 600 to 800 kilometres driving each day. Most of the time since arriving home has been devoted to getting things sorted out again. There was unpacking to do, cleaning up, cars to wash, pool to clean, backyard things to be put out again and then to top it all off, the second car would not start. RACQ service fitted a new battery and it was mobile again and I was $135 poorer! Catching up on sleep has been another high priority!

Just before leaving Melbourne Arj's wireless broadband was connected, a little late to allow us time to set things up. He seems delighted with the added speed and the wireless connectivity.

Weather on the trip home was clear but very cold. For the first time since records have been kept, the Sunshine Coast recorded a minimum temperature of -1 degrees. It was the first time there had been a frost here! There was a lot of 'road kill' as we drove home. For those overseas, "road-kill" is animals which have been struck by car. The most common animal is the Aussie kangaroo. In some places there was one dead animal every kilometre. They cause a lot of damage to cars and cause many drivers to stay off the road over night time hours.

I was keen to set up my new cheap webcam I had bought in Melbourne on the PC. After setting it up and creating a Skype account I found both my printer (a Canon i350) and external DVD burner would not work properly. When I removed the webcam and associated drivers the printer worked again! I updated the printer driver and reloaded the webcam driver but still the printer would not work. One of the hassles associated with buying cheap computer hardware I suppose from non recognised manufacturers. I am in the market for a 'known' brand webcam!

Any one want to buy a cheap webcam?

Wild and Windy, Snow To Come!

The weather in Melbourne today is expected to be wet, windy and cold with a change coming through at lunchtime. It is blowing a gale at the moment. However there is some snow forecast for the nearby Dandenong Ranges this afternoon. This does not happen all that often even, in this part of the world.

These two photos were taken before the bad weather arrived but show dark skies and windy weather! Click on them for a larger view.

At home on the Sunshine Coast yesterday saw a minimum of 1 degree, an unheard of temperature for the Coast! It is expected to improve a little by the weekend. This cold windy weather is going to follow us all the way home according to the weather forecast!

By this time tomorrow (Wednesday) we will be on the road heading home.

There were still a couple of people I had wanted to catch up with. I had reserved an afternoon to do one of these visits but unannounced visitors popped in or baby sitting duties suddenly arose and a couple of visits to good friends did not take place. I apologize for not getting to you.

We are flying down again late August and early September for 12 days. Drop me an email and we will arrange a mutually convenient time and try to catch up. Please don't suggest a weekend or Friday as these days are usually family get together days or I am heading off to the footy!

Thanks to friends, next time we are in Melbourne we will have access to a car and be mobile despite flying down.

Showery Again On Sunday

Hectic social engagements continue and I guess I am starting to wilt under the pressure. Along with 85,000 others I went to the MCG yesterday and watched my footy team Geelong defeat Collingwood. It was a tight match with Geelong holding sway for most of the game. They are now the favored team to win the AFL Premiership. Melbourne is without doubt a more sports minded city than where we live. Here the religion is AFL.

Last night (Saturday) we travelled cross town and spent the evening with Chris, Wendy and the two older grandchildren Andrew and Emily. I went directly from the footy so we both were pleased to eventually get to bed and rest up.

Those of you who don't know Melbourne may not be aware of the freeway which travels right under the city emerging on the other side. It is a tremendous engineering feat making what once a feared traffic snarl into a 'cakewalk'. This is a photo taken in the 4 km tunnel last night while driving home last night.

Today it is down to Drouin to catch up with good friends and plan for our motor launch trip. We will have numerous beers and enjoy a BBQ lunch. The temp is expected to soar to about 12 degrees. Right now it is gray and a shower is crossing the sky. Hopefully the rain will disappear and we will have a little sun for this afternoon. (12 is about low to mid 50's).

Three more nights remain for us in Melbourne before setting off back to the Sunshine Coast.

Saturday Update

Life in Melbourne continues to be very busy for us. The social commitments continue, all of which we are enjoying very much.

Despite being out every night now we are handling the hectic social life well. Also Trish assists Kate with grand children issues whenever possible.

My sister Judy is currently caravanning with Peter riverside at Isisford in Western Queensland (and loving the lifestyle there). You may have to "Google" Isisford to see exactly where it is.

I caught up with my brother yesterday.

Football at the MCG today and then to the other side of the city for an evening with Chris, Wendy and our other grandchildren.

Sunday sees us travel to Drouin to catch up with Barry and Rainy. Other friends will be there and we will be discussing arrangements for our Whitsundays Motor Launch cruise in October.

Monday sees us taking care of some finance requirements with our advisor before another evening engagement. Trish's brother is coming over Tuesday for lunch and we will have a final family gathering Tuesday night before heading northwards again back home on Wednesday.

And what do we do with our spare time? Well as much of 'this' as we possibly can!

And I hear summer has hit West Texas with a vengeance, a hot and sticky 32 degrees there all week. I received an email 'out of the blue' from a family in West Texas. They had stumbled upon the blog page and I receive regular updates about the lifestyle and happenings there.

Another Melbourne Update

Days have continued to be fairly busy. We are trying to catch up with people but as per usual people make contact late in the visit when we are very nearly fully booked up. We are 'out' almost every night now before we leave. Our daughter Kate still appreciates having her mum around to help out with two little ones to look after.

We expect to leave here next Wednesday morning and arrive home about lunchtime on Friday.

I got this from West Texas! You can click on the pictures for a larger view.

Bill owns a company that manufactures and installs car wash systems. Bill's company installed a car wash system in Frederick, Md. Now, understand that these are complete systems, including the money changer and money taking machines.

The problem started when the new owner complained to Bill that he was losing significant amounts of money from his coin machines each week.

He went as far as to accuse Bill's employees of having a key to the boxes and ripping him off. Bill just couldn't believe that his people would do that, so they set up a camera to catch the thief in action. Well, they did catch him on film!


That's a bird sitting on the change slot of the machine.



The bird had to go down into the machine, and back up inside to get to the money!


That's three quarters he has in his beak! Another amazing thing is that it was not just one bird -- there were several working together. Once they identified the thieves, they found over $4000 in quarters on the roof the car wash and more under a nearby tree.


And you thought you heard of everything by now!!

A Sunny But Cool Saturday

This is the scene from our daughter's front door yesterday. It was cold and wet most of the day. Click on the picture for a bigger view. It is a panorama shot I created from a program I downloaded from Appznet (link on the right) called Panorama Studio. Unlike other 'photo stitch' programs I have used (Autostitch), the final file was still over 2 Mb and therefore had plenty of detail.

My sister Judy arrived from upcountry Victoria on Friday. They were travelling north to their favorite caravan spot on the river at a place called Isisford in western Queensland. They dropped in for 45 minutes for some quick lunch and to catch up with our daughter's new family addition. It was good to see them again. They made a hasty retreat as the rain again began to pour down to ensure they missed any of the Melbourne peak hour traffic. They were forced to travel via Melbourne after snow had blocked their way across the high country from where they live in Omeo.

I went to the AFL footy last night at Telstra Dome. I enjoyed the night very much especially as my team got home by 50 points. Over 50,000 were at the match. However it is a long night and I drove home at 11:30 pm again through the wind and rain.

Saturday is a bright sunny day here. It will be a stay at home day today before heading to the Melbourne Cricket Ground tomorrow Sunday for another AFL footy match, Melbourne Vs Carlton. Arj's brother and family are coming over for dinner this evening.

Birthday Time

Thursday was a family day. We all set off for Chadstone, one of Melbourne's largest suburban shopping centres. This is a two car exercise, Kate, Arj and the two kids in their car while Trish and I follow along in our car. The freeway had been closed because of a fatal accident. There was traffic chaos as people tried to get to work.

Eventually we all caught up and then met with Trish's sister. A wander around the shopping centre then followed. Arj and I finished up in a DVD/CD/Electrical shop while the others found their way to look at baby clothes. For Kate it is a real 'expedition' to plan for two toddlers to go shopping!

After leaving them to head home we sought to catch up with our youngest daughter Kim who was celebrating a birthday. We spent a little time waiting for her to finish work in a hotel warming up from the chilly Melbourne winter. One patron had this win while were there! You will need to click on the photo for a larger view.

A great night out with Kim followed.

Friday was a lovely sunny (but cool) morning!

Beautiful One Day, Stormy The Next

Tuesday was a sunny day getting up to about 15 degrees in suburban Melbourne. We spent a quiet family day doing some baby sitting to allow Kate and Arj to do some catching up with shopping. Reading and soaking up the sunshine through the windows seemed to be the major tasks for us

Wednesday we awoke to an absolute shocker. Strong winds, grey skies and showers with a cool max of about 13 degrees. An inside day was on the agenda! Arj was catching up on some work back at school (both he and Kate are teachers) even though it is holiday time. This meant our services were required to help Kate out. She is recovering from her caesar and getting more movement all the time.

Arj has also decided to go to Broadband with his internet connection. AAPT have a great deal at the moment for under $40 per month. Free connection and a wireless modem for $99. Needless to say to get that deal (till the end of July) you have to put your phone with them too. It comes with a 12GB limit and 512 speed. For another $10 you can get 1500 speed and 15 GB limit. For some of you overseas this is probably not all that quick a connection, however a download speed of 512 is about the average for this part of the world. Quicker speeds for everyone however is not far away with he government signing new deals to roll out faster internet to much of Australia.

A Cold Day But Lots Of Laughs

On Monday Trish and I set off to catch up with a former boss of mine Eddie Riordan and his wife Patsy. As usual it was lots of fun reliving times we had spent in schools together, telling lies to each other and exaggerating the great times we had had together.

A few beers, red wines and a champers or two made for a great day. It was great to catch up with them again. The photo shows Eddie being silly again!

In today's email I received this photo from Yumi Yamashita, one of the ISSE Delegates who visited Langwarrin Primary School during the 1990's. Trish and I had sent a small gift to her to give to her son Ryusei for his first birthday. It was a surfing T Shirt and a koala cap. This photo seems to indicate Ryusei enjoyed his present!