July 2011

THE SIMPLE WOMAN'S JOURNAL

http://thesimplewomansdaybook.blogspot.com/2011/08/august-edition-of-simple-womans-daybook.html

JULY 2011

I start with the Simple Women's format and continue on as a journal.

Outside my window...the sun is shining and a football game is going on on the oval next-door.

I am thinking...I really should be attempting to shift the Writer's Block which is affecting my newest project.

I am thankful...that I'm so lucky to have lived so long and happily.

In the kitchen...there is a large joint of beef I want my husband to cut to fit inside my slow cooker.

I am wearing...a blue jumper and matching jacket with slacks. I put the jacket on when I went to the shops and it's too chilly to take it off again!

I am creating...a childrens' book, with a cartoonist friend of mine, but my side of it is not going well.

I am going...nowhere this weekend. Next week is very full....a beachfront walk on Monday, teaching Public Speaking at a local school and putting on one of my plays in the evening on Tuesday......and so it goes.

I am wondering...what the ache is at the top of my leg. I always think everything's cancer!

I am reading...the enormously fat weekend papers, which are full of woe.

I am hoping...I see something of my daughter this week; she works in Income Tax so she's run off her feet at present.

I am looking forward to...everything.

I am hearing...birdsong; they seem to think it's Spring but there's still a month to go.

Around the house...on the surface everything looks good but oh those cupboards!

I am pondering...how to present my September talk on Graphology.

One of my favorite things...is chocolate. We only have it at the weekend and it's like a childish treat.

A few plans for the rest of the week....... to REALLY work on that children's book!

*

I was surprised to see that I had some new Followers on this Blog, although I haven't added anything to it for months it seems. I think two poems of mine from my main Blog, Rinkly Rimes, crept in by mistake.

(http://rinklyrimes.blogspot.com/)

But I like the format and I enjoy reading about the lives of other people, so I'm back again to consider how my life has been during July.

As usual it has been very social. It being winter we've been in the house more than usual and we've had the boys around sometimes, of course. Usually, it's just on a Thursday, when we collect them from school, but all three of them were at our house one weekend and they decided to have a wrestle!

Afterwards Blake said farewell to his little dog, Banjo, who was staying with us while the family went camping. I thought they were mad as the night temperature inland dips below freezing at this time of year! Anyway, it appears that the warmer months are dangerous because of snakes, so they decided to brave the cold. They went to an area where the river has recently been stocked with fish and, by all accounts, they had a good time. Rather them than me! (Sorry about Banjo's eyes! It appears dogs have 'blue eye' rather than red when the flash is used.)

The weather was very wintry while Rebecca, Brian and Blake were away. We had enormous seas. Sometimes the waves were too high for even the surfers to risk them.

Most of the socialising was of the indoor-type in July, as one would expect. The Choir did a concert at an Old Age facility early in the month. They actually did another one last week but I was unable to go. I was also unable to go on The Walk one day as I bit into my muesli a little too hard one morning and bit a tooth in half. I had to have an emergency appointment at the dentist's for an extraction, instead of taking a brisk walk with my friends! Here is the choir performance I managed to attend.

Later in the month we performed one of my little melodramas at a Church drop-in centre. It was an old one, 'Unhand Me!', but it was new to this audience. We were given a really sumptuous lunch afterwards.

We had our Book Club evening mid-month. We discussed 'Who Wants to be a Millionaire' which is about a well-known Australian mogul and his family. We all decided we'd rather be us! Here are Gwen, Pam and Gwenda enjoying the evening.

The next little flurry of excitement was Betty's birthday party. She's the one in black here. This was the only photo that came out at all well. Bev organised  a quiz and the prizes were bank-notes with Betty's face on them. Strangely enough, the shops wouldn't accept them!

 The most recent social occasion was Malcolm's club's Xmas in July luncheon. Xmas in July is very big in Australia as it's usually too hot for traditional fare in December. I made-up a poem for the occasion which went down quite well.

There were several other enjoyable events in the month but they were not photographed. I got together with my friend, Peter, the cartoonist on the local paper, to discuss a book idea. He always incorporates his little dog, Romeo, in his cartoons, and we're attempting to write a childrens' book about the dog. So he came for coffee and we tossed some ideas around. Nothing concrete yet, though, and we know it's an uphill battle, getting things 'out there'.

I also met a new aquaintance, Maureen, for coffee and we discussed concert ideas. She directs the Broke Festival. (Broke is a small NSW town but the performers come from all over) It's held at a winery, which sounds promising! Not that I drink wine, but I like the atmosphere it creates.

Malcolm and I also had a very tasty lunch at our friend Pam's place one Sunday. Unfortunately, there was a mix-up with the dates so we were the only people to turn up! Which meant we had a feast of pork crackling!

All our Fridays have been taken-up with melodrama rehearsals, of course. We meet for lunch and then rehearse in the room upstairs in a room the management allows us to use. We always have a great time, although my reputation as a bossy-boots grows with each play!

My Nanny Nap was disturbed today by a big local Rugby Football match! This is a very peaceful neighbourhood, but we are sometimes invaded by Saturday Sport. I took a few shots from my bedroom balcony. Theey are practising on our median strip.







Australia has been horrified by the news from Norway, of course. It's only a small country (about the same population as NZ) so they can never have expected such chaos. We're also quite disturbed about the American financial situation and we're hoping a default doesn't cause  a world-wide slow-down. We've come through the Global Turndown very well, due to our minerals, but our high dollar is causing problems. Our dollar is now worth $1.10 US, and that makes our exports too expensive. I suppose we'll all muddle through as usual.

See you in August.

Brenda Bryant.