Tag Archives: socialising

Slant & Schooldays

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We have had done all manner of things since my last post. When we made a trip to Melbourne to deliver the refuurbished step stool we also helped our daughter install some new blinds in her unit.

I have also replenished our freezer stock of soup with 12 serves of leek and potato soup and 11 serves of pumpkin soup. It is great to have a supply of hearty, ready-to-eat meals.

Socialising has not been forgotten either. We met GMan’s cousin and husband for lunch one day, went to a local bar last night to hear a local band and today we watched a movie at the Theatre Royal in Castlemaine. It was not just any movie but an independent Australian film called ‘Slant’ starring Sigrid Thornton.

I must admit that I had not heard of Slant until a few weeks ago when we received the July programme for the Theatre Royal as we are members. You can read a bit more about the theatre here. As well as the prospect of supporting a local independent film it was exciting to read that the event included a Q & A session with some of the cast and crew, including Sigrid Thornton.

The film is described as ‘darkly comic’ which is quite apt. It was quirky, fast-paced, interesting and definitely had its humorous moments. To say anymore would be to give too much away. Please consider going if you have an opportunity to see ‘Slant’ and support independent creative locals.

The icing on the cake was the opportunity to chat with Sigrid Thornton after the event. It is 53 years since we were in the same class at primary school in Brisbane and I am so pleased that I made the effort to introduce myself. She was thoroughly delightful and seemed genuinely pleased to meet me.

Thank goodness for a phone camera to record the moment.

Somewhat Sociable

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I know that my posts for the past 5 weeks have mostly about getting things organised in our new home but recently we have managed our share of being out and about, too. So much so, that 5 days have managed to slip by since my last post.

A couple of weeks ago we joined the Theatre Royal in Castlemaine. Apparently this makes us ‘loyal royal’ supporters and as such we are eligible for discounted movie tickets. We took advantage of this on Tuesday evening when we went to see Allelujah starring Jennifer Saunders and Judi Dench. There are a good mix of new releases and arthouse films and we are looking forward to seeing more.

When we were given our membership tickets we also received a teatowel each. Whilst it might seem strange, I actually appreciated the fact that it was a practical freebie that was not just plastic junk.

It was a bit of a movie week as we also joined the local film society with the rather clever moniker of ‘Maldon Golden Movies’. There is a screening once a month which is a selection of recent and classic films. On Thursday we saw ‘Black Narcissus’, a 1947 film starring Deborah Kerr.

Movies were not the only outings. On Sunday afternoon we went to a small bar which hosts live music from some of the very talented locals. We met some other residents and ended up going to dinner with a group of them afterwards.

We are heading out this evening to the same venue for some more musical adventures.

Next week sees the beginning of a 2 week festival ‘Maldon in Winter‘ which has a wide variety of events with something for everyone. We are busily deciding which events we would like to attend.

For a relatively small town, Maldon has plenty to offer for locals and visitors alike.

Pandemic Picnic

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Today we had a picnic. The occasion was meeting up with several of my Year 8 cohort from high school. 2021 marks 50 years since we began high school. 10 of us shared fun, laughter and crazy memories.

This event started me thinking that picnics seem to have become our default method of socialising. Even though our area has been mostly spared from Covid 19 cases, more and more of us appear to be enjoying the great outdoors for social occasions.

One of my cousins contacted me yesterday and suggested a get together with several of my extended family – a possible picnic! Most definitely count me in.

A picnic naturally means food. Do you have any favourite picnic fare? Picnics come in as many guises as participants. It is not all stereotypical rattan picnic hampers with red and white checked cloths.

Your set-up can be as simple or elaborate as you wish. In fact, one of the guests today brought a wedge of cheese, a baguette, knife and wooden chopping board in a backpack. This was happily shared with others in the group.

I would love to hear your thoughts on picnics and other socialising. Has the pandemic changed your outlook?

Finding Balance

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It is a little over 6 months since I finished work and I am now beginning to look at how I manage my time at home.

While I was working it was the time available which dictated what I achieved at home.  However, now that has all changed as my time is my own.

The first 6 months were taken up with the final preparations for our overseas trip followed by 9 weeks overseas then it was less than 2 months until Christmas and a road trip and family Christmas.

My activities can be roughly divided into the following categories (in alphabetical order, not priority):

Cooking – meal preparation – sometimes in bulk
Exercise – aquarobics, gym and walking
Gardening – growing vegetables, flowers and shrubs
Household maintenance/renovations – usually in conjunction with GMan
Online/Computer – blog, Facebook, emails
Relaxing – reading, music, television
Routine housework – making bed, washing, ironing, sweeping, vacuuming
Sewing – clothes, mending, patchwork and Boomerang bags
Socialising – book club, film society, theatre, friends, family, Air BnB guests
Shopping – groceries and miscellaneous
Travel – local, interstate and overseas

By their very nature, housework and cooking tend to occur everyday.  Formal exercise is twice a week but I am trying to include either some walking or gardening every other day.

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I try to find time for some gardening, relaxing and computer work each day.

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Sewing and socialising usually happen several days a week.

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Shopping is as little as possible but groceries are mostly once a week.

Some activities cross over such as aquarobics and socialising.  I also try to combine activities and errands to limit the number of trips I make into our local town (8km away).

From time to time a particular activity may demand a substantial block of time to the exclusion of almost everything else but I generally try to keep a mix of activities each day or so.

 

 

 

Newly Retired

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Blog posts have been few and far between over the last 6 months as I navigated the countdown to retirement.  I had previously managed to successfully combine the running of a household with full-time work but once I could see the end in sight I tended to put several things on the back burner so that I could focus on tying up as many loose ends as possible in my job as well as training my successor.

So, my last day in the office was Thursday 4th July, otherwise known as Independence Day.

I searched for a suitable retirement image but nothing sums it up better than this photo.  We now have the time to explore our own backyard as well as further afield and simply enjoy being surrounded by scenery like the amazing Glasshouse Mountains.

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The past 3 weeks have been an absolute revelation.  You do not have to be constantly busy.  It is OK to take your time.  What does not get done today will be done tomorrow.  It has been a huge relief to feel the pressure fall away.

The first week of retirement coincided with school holidays so we had our granddaughters visiting for a few days and managed some outings and activities with them.

Since then I have caught up on sleep – no more 5am starts, exercised – walking each day and socialised – lunch with school friends, morning tea with cousins and several more lunches planned as well as a gallery visit.

Catching up on appointments is much easier without having to juggle them around work.  Dentist, optometrist, financial planner, tax agent and so on.

On the home front, meals are prepared, rooms cleaned and washing done with the minimum of fuss.  I am doing some sewing, too.

Meanwhile, we are putting the finishing touches to the plans for our next overseas trip.  We leave in a little over 3 weeks and have a couple more train trips to book.

That is only a brief overview but suffice to say that I am not bored.

I plan to share more details of the day to day activities now that life is running at a much more reasonable pace.

Thank you for sticking with me during the very lean blogging periods.

 

All Work and No Play….

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….makes Jack a dull boy, according to the rhyme.

Well, although I have been busy with work at home and in the office it is great to ‘play’ a little, too.

On Wednesday I visited the retirement village where my mother lives and joined in their Ekka Day.  For those of you who are not Queenslanders – the Ekka is the nickname for the Royal Agricultural Show which happens in Brisbane each year for about 10 days in early August.  To celebrate this occasion there was a morning of games of chance, bags of sweets, art and craft displays followed by a themed lunch.  In the true tradition of this time of year it was a bright, sunny day but with a bitterly cold westerly wind so I was rugged up.  Mum and I inadvertently managed to match our outfits.

IMG_0736_1_1GMan and I dined out on Friday to celebrate his birthday.  We went to a local Italian restaurant for pizza.  They have the option of a gluten-free base for the pizza which suits me and we indulged on dessert as well.  Waffles for GMan and pavlova for me.

We have been socialising again today when we went to visit some friends who have recently moved into their new home.  Instead of driving down the highway we took the scenic back roads.  At Mt Mee we stopped at a lookout and captured the views.  This is looking north-east towards the Glasshouse Mountains.

010An old cottage and bunya pines.

017North-west towards the Blackall Range.

020We enjoyed a leisurely lunch, lively conversation and a stroll around the back paddock.  What more could we wish for on a sunny Sunday afternoon in winter?

I hope you have had a wonderful weekend with time for both work and play.

Mini Moments

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My focus has been on the real world rather than blogging over the past week.

We have had a long weekend here and a house-guest which was lovely.

Much of the time was spent chatting and being social so not too much housework was done.  However it is interesting to look around and see that there was not too much that needed doing.  I think that the trick is to do a little bit frequently.

It only takes a moment to get a few small jobs done.  As you know, we do not arrive home from work until after 7pm.  Last night I made salad while The Duke cooked the salmon on the BBQ. After dinner I hung out a load of washing that I had done before I went to work and brought in the dry clothes from the line and folded them.  I also cleaned the vanity and mirror in the bathroom and re-made the guest bed.

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This morning I unloaded the dishwasher and tonight will bring in the washing plus finish the ironing.  There are only about 5 items as I did most of it on the weekend.

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I simply do not have the time or inclination to spend huge chunks of time on housework so this method works best for me.  It also means that my weekends are kept reasonably clear for spending time in the garden or more time-consuming jobs like preparing several meals.