Year: 2020

The boys and girls are on their way back to Sydney and we wake to an empty house. Its been joyful and almost unexpected in its breadth. Over Xmas we were lucky to have friends over for a Xmas party, following restrictions,  and to enjoy going out to restaurants but also having meals at home…

While the shopping, cleaning and cooking are going on apace, amid fears of a Sydney covid hot- spot erupting, and with my heart in my mouth as a consequence, I have to find a way to calm myself down and say it will all be fine – and the best way to do that is…

Last year all our efforts, thoughts, and financial support went to the Firefighters as they were fighting blazes all around Australia. This year its raining cats and dogs along the East Coast. Feast or Famine characterises Oz. As family is planning to visit – we have our fingers firmly crossed- we want to do what…

It’s been a while coming with some major blips along the way. The first colony swarmed and buggered off as they were too shaded under the poinciana tree. The second colony positioned further up in the garden on raised stumps was remarkably more lively – as I can testify when I was stung repeatedly in…

I set off to go the Fridge Community Library up the road – in case you don’t know it, it is an old Fridge which doubles up as a Library and people can borrow or take books and contribute ones they no longer want.  I made the mistake of heading out about 500 pm –…

Its the first day of December, its officially the first day of Summer, and the borders to NSW and Victoria have been thrown open. As if she didn’t want us to miss her appearance, summer has stormed in with heatwaves affecting many parts of Australia and the temperatures have broken records. They say they will…

No Dougall on this one. A special walk with a good friend and excellent historian through a very old (by Oz standards) suburb of Brisbane, New Farm. One of the early ones to be populated and built – there were lots of Italians and Greeks here, a fair few industries and enterprises, some murky criminal…

Gorgeous day to set out on a midday walk. Our first stop a stone by the creek where someone had left this delicate and lovely crochet for us to admire.  Onto the creek where we saw a little water snake about a foot long, a beige colour, slick and sleek it disappeared into the creek’s…

Last night Queensland made History. It held the world’s biggest live sports event and I was THERE. There were 50,000 people at Suncorp Stadium to watch the third Game of State of Origin. The series is normally played in the winter here but as the country was in lockdown this did not happen. The teams…

Our first weekend away across the magical QLD – NSW border and all went well. Boys came from Sydney and we travelled south to Byron Bay and we met on those magnificent beaches which I never tire of, especially when they prepare us and excite us for the season ahead. Isn’t it just postcard perfect…