Gloroius Weather

It is the last day of July and a glorious 23 degrees with a sunny sky.  We have just completed the coldest part of the year for us here.  But the weather has been overcast and warmer than average this July.  There has been absolutely no hint of needing any heating at all this winter.  But we could still get a cold outbreak.

For what is usually a very dry time of the year we had rain on 14 days out of the month's 31 which is most unusual.

I managed to do my bike ride this morning and arrived home unscathed.  After yesterday's dramas this was a great change.

I posted off an updated hard drive for a mate this afternoon, I purchased a bag of pool salt and looked for a new container which sits on the back of my bike in which I carry bits and pieces.  The first two tasks were completed OK but the final task wasn't.  Bunnings didn't have the correct container size.  I will just keep my eye open for a suitable replacement.  Plastic doesn't last well in this part of the world.  It goes hard and then cracks easily.

My PC just froze earlier today.  I restarted it but it was doing all sorts of strange things.  I managed to shut it down and then pulled the plug on it for 30 seconds or so.  I plugged it all back in and it started up OK. 

Just to be on the safe side I did a "System Restore".  The PC created a system restore point this morning during a Microsoft Update at 7:30 am.  So the 'system' was restored to how it was at that time.  All seems 100% again.

We rediscovered the wonderful restaurant 'The Spirit Of Tibet' yesterday. This restaurant is a favorite of everyone who visits up here with us.  It has reopened after being closed down for a year or so.  There is no prize for guessing where we are heading out for a meal tonight!

Late Tuesday

It was a very overcast day with some showers on Monday.  We didn't get a lot of rain, just enough for everyone to be kept indoors. I tipped 4mls out of the rain gauge.

The main part of the day was spent mucking about on the PC and pretending to be busy.  Earlier in the day I bottled the latest brew.

Today Tuesday was a different kettle of fish.  It was dry outside so I jumped on my bike.  It says I did 7ks but it felt like a lot more.  You see I got a puncture fortunately only a k or so from home.  It isn't easy walking a distance and wheeling a bike.  It was the back wheel as well which means to repair the puncture you need to take the wheel all the way off and you have to mess around with the chain.

It took two goes to fix the puncture but all seems OK now.

Nothing 20 minutes in the shower and scrubbing brush couldn't fix getting my hands clean again.

We headed out to the Beerwah Hotel for a spot of lunch.  We had planned to head into Brisbane and then onto Sunnybank with friends.  However they had to rush to Sydney after a family member suffered a stroke. 

The Beerwah Hotel was a pleasant spot but wasn't really worth the effort.

But we did learn that our favorite restaurant here "The Spirit of Tibet" had reopened in Mooloolaba.  It has been closed for over a year or so now.  To have it back is fantastic.  We had to go to Mooloolaba as one of my hearing aids was playing up and that is where my Hearing guy is.

We drove by the new restaurant and now have the number firmly planted in my phone.  It occupies the site of a former Greek restaurant we visited for lunch a few weeks ago.  It has gone and The Spirit Of Tibet is back in its place.

We had a very quick stop off at "Doctor Dan's" for some 'medicine' and then home around 3:30.  It was a sensational day, around 23 degrees and plenty of sunshine.  It was too good an opportunity so I took just over 20 minutes and gave the front lawn a mow.

Friends from down south have sent me up a hard drive to stock with recent movies and TV Shows.  That took some time this morning but hopefully I can now get to post office tomorrow afternoon and post the drive back to him.

Sunday, But Not Overly Sunny

The Arts Centre has its "Quilt Show" on this weekend.  This means Trish leaves home around 8 am and gets back home about 5 pm or so both days over this weekend.  This left me to computer club yesterday and then the footy on TV.

Today was bike riding this morning, some messing about on the computer and then footy all afternoon.  In other words, a typical winter's weekend for yours truly.

The photo shows one spot where I ride most days.  As you can see from the photo, it is a little cloudy today.  Hopefully the cloud will clear for some sunshine later.

Good mate Russ has a new mobile phone.  He isn't keen on mobiles but now believes there is a need for one especially for emergency purposes.  He sent me his phone number yesterday to which I responded with a quick 'text' message.  Don't know if he got it or not as I haven't heard.  But then you can only read messages if the phone is turned on can't you?

With so many great cheap plans around at the moment the need for a fixed phone line and phone is rapidly decreasing.  Trish's $30 per month plan (now $25 per month on a one year 'pre-paid' plan) includes all calls and a huge amount of data.

Our last Telstra Bill was $22-95, and that was the "Budget" plan.  There weren't any calls, just line rental.  My calls are all via my "Virgin" plan (on the Optus network) while Trish has great call usage with her Kogan/Telstra service.

Both Trish's and my footy teams won well so far this weekend.

I am having a little trouble getting my latest home brew ready to bottle.  It usually takes around 6 days from brewing to bottling.  Today is the 8th day and it is still working away quietly.  I think I may be bottling tomorrow though as it is slowing down.  I let the brew get a little cool during the week (24 degrees) and that appears to have slowed the brewing process.  Usually it sits more around 28 degrees if you can believe the strip thermometer attached to the container.

Thursday Cancelled

I have decided to cancel Thursday owing to lack of interest!  I am lacking interest in today following a late but extremely enjoyable farewell BBQ last evening.  Not everyone was drinking only wine throughout the night but it is believed there were 10 empty wine bottles just as we were about to head home. I had a few beers and followed that up with a few quiet glasses of wine.

Please don't ask me what time we got home because I don't know.  I do know I had a screaming thirst about 4:30 this morning and hastily consumed the best part of 1 litre of water.

Needless to say today's bike ride was 'abbreviated' owing to my medical condition.  There may have also been a contentious moment had I been breathalysed during the ride.  I did 9k's instead of the usual 13.  It is quite blustery here today so the very strong wind didn't assist with any enjoyment arising from my daily bike ride.

You would think a person of my age would have more sense!

Out of the breeze it is quite pleasant outside with hardly a cloud in the sky.  A top in the low 20's is forecast for today!

My mid afternoon trip to the Chiro yesterday has proved successful with my back feeling so much better.  Either that or the headache I have at the moment has overpowered any pain arising from my back!

No Whale Watching

Tuesday's whale watching didn't happen!  Consistent showers later on Monday and the promise of a cold southerly wind decided us against venturing out onto the ocean Tuesday.  It was a decision well made.  The wind has again reverted to the icy southerly we had a week or two ago. It battled to 19 or so yesterday and whale watching will be put on the back burner until next week and the promise of some nicer weather.

Instead we decided on a lunch out.  We went with friends Ian and Kerrie to the Pelican Waters Tavern.  For around $14 we got garlic bread and a pretty reasonable 'pub' meal.  They had some $4 schooners going as well.

After getting up from my chair at lunch yesterday I knew something had happened to my back.  I was in a lot  of discomfort.  I took a muscle relaxant around 8 pm and another this morning at 5 am.  Right now it is reasonable but I am again booked in for the Chiro this afternoon.

I wasn't game enough to jump on my bike this morning my back was so painful.

Despite the brisk wind, there is hardly a cloud in the sky.  In our protected back yard it is almost 23 degrees sitting up the back at 10 am.  I will head back out there shortly for a 'warm up'.

I still am awaiting patiently for news from the 'builder' on the sun cover for the back yard.  It is the area in the photo which will be covered.  Hopefully with the winter sun being low in the sky, morning sunshine should still penetrate in under the cover at this time of the year.

Another Friday drinks couple are heading to the USA for a month on Friday so we are having a farewell BBQ for them this evening. That should be lots of fun.  I will need to move carefully.

The hit TV Show Breaking Bad is in its fifth and final series of 16 episodes.  They showed 8 episodes mid 2012 and the final 8 are due for TV in the next few weeks.  Last night we finished the first 8 5th season episodes.  I find it easy to see why this show scores 9.4 out of 10 on the website IMDB, it is a great series.