Slow Cooking

Sitting here on my Eeee-PC while a roast of lamb sizzles in the oven, I thought I would find a picture for Paull. Making him homesick is not a problem because he has just heard that he has a work-related trip coming up in July:) I guess he was chosen because he can speak Australian fluently. I understand that the B&B he will be staying in is very reasonably priced, too.

One good thing about winter is cooking stews and roasts (and baked vegetables and stuffed capsicums, Anne & Julia). Funnily enough, it is always easy to get everyone to stay home on roast lamb night!

Getting Together for Human Rights

The on-line community group GetUp organises GetTogethers occasionally for grass roots feedback on important issues such as reconciliation. Last week I joined in by hosting one in my local area. Eight people I had never met joined me at the local coffee shop to go through GetUp's agenda and form our submission to the Human Rights Enquiry. It was an inspiring evening with some very smart, aware people. We decided that despite the legislation protecting rights already in place, a Human Rights Act would prevent people slipping through the cracks. So I prepared our submission and sent it in. Democracy in action!

Hibernating

What passes for winter here in Sydney is just beginning to bite, and this loooooong weekend has been a good time to hibernate, tidy cupboards, read papers, slooow down. I picked up a bargain at the two-dollar shop (for six dollars) - a cosy cat-bed. My only question was -would our fussy cat (Spice) like it? My other question should have been - would our fussy cat fit in the bargain bed? She walked around it, sniffed it all over, stood in it for a few minutes, then began the laborious task of trying to curl up in it. Mission accomplished - she stayed there all night; a cosy fit.

Is there a better feeling than waking up on Monday but it is not the usual Monday? It is sleep in, slow breakfast, go out to a movie & lunch. Happy Birthday, Queen, and thanks for the holiday!

Two Birthdays and a Wedding

What a lovely weekend we all had. Good friends, whose birthdays are only a week apart - decided that their joint 40th would be as good a time as any to get married (or "committed" as they would say). Not just a party, but a whole weekend. In the country. In an old guesthouse.

Enlisting my clever (Events Manager) daughter to mastermind the event turned out to be an excellent idea! Just travelling down to the Southern Highlands and meeting up at an historic pub at Berrima put me and my friends in a party mood from the get-go. When we arrived at the venue at Bundanoon, everyone was in the same mood so it was always going to be a great night.

After a beautiful ceremony, it was time for Karioke, dancing, eating, the *fun booth (!) and later sitting around the log fire, cake and supper. What we still had to talk about at 3am I don't know, but we eventually decided to go to bed. Breakfast was BBQ bacon and eggs at 10am, and no-one was in a hurry to go home.

*And the fun booth? An instant picture booth, with dress up props, four snaps each go, one strip to you and one placed in an album for the happy couple. As the night wore on, the creativity of the snaps increased exponentially!