I'm so annoyed....
I had basically finished this post, but somehow deleted it all. I'm using Justin's old laptop (now my laptop) and we're at Hobart Airport - 23/1 around 8pm. We've been here for a week "renovating" the boat on the inside - sanding, filling, painting, repeat etc etc
Anyway, back to this post - don't know what I did - but I now have to re- write it
So, arrived in Inglewood after 6pm on Friday. Had wanted to get there earlier, but had many self imposed chores (had just got back from 2 weeks at Ocean Grove yesterday)
Helen and Michaela had been there since around lunchtime
There was a card in an envelope which had been slipped under the front door. It was from a lady in Castlemaine who had come to the Arts Trail event, and loved the house. She invited Justin and I to go and visit her in Castlemaine (how nice) and see her lovely house. We'll certainly take her up on it at some stage. As per below - the card was a William Morris design which was very apt
Had some leftovers for dinner - and started watching Bump with Helen - Michaela didn't want to - just stayed in her room
Saturday, and Michaela had wanted to go into Bendigo to the Op Shops and also to the Art Gallery - so we did
First the Op Shops, I bought a few wine glasses, and Helen and Michaela bought all sorts of things. We also saw Nicole from Kingower in the 1st and 2nd one (went to many more)
Had an average lunch in a Bendigo Bakery
And then onto the Art Gallery - there were many exhibitions there
First we saw the Paul Guest Drawing competition finalists - below is one of my favourites
And Living Connections - reflections on care, Kinship and country
Then the Rob McHaffie Exhibition
Australians abroad in Paris
And lastly the regular galleries
Its such a good Art Gallery - we loved it ! Helen had had enough though, and was waiting for us outside
Anyway, we felt exhausted after all this walking around
Left Bendigo around 4pm, and Helen and I went straight to the pool when we got back to Inglewood, as it was a very hot and sunny day. By the way, it now only costs $2.50 to enter, as the Bendigo Bank has provided a grant so that entry is now half price for all ticket types
Helen was delighted with a packet of pizza shapes - which had an extraordinary amount of the flavouring powder (seemed an aberration, as she bought a 2nd pack, and it had a normal/modest amount of flavouring)
Left on closing at 7pm - dinner at home, and more Bump
Sunday, and we had organised to leave the house at 7am, as we wanted to see platypus at Bridgewater.
Was lovely and still, and we were very quiet, but the corellas and cockatoos weren't. Didn't see any platypus. Did see a large splash, and what might have been a murray cod surfacing vertically - whatever it was, it was quite big and substantial
Back to the house for breakfast - followed by my quizzes etc lying down on the dining room couch
While there, I spotted an errant wine cork on the floor under a chair, and as I looked beyond the wine cork, the floor seemed darker around it
I reluctantly left the couch for a closer look- and was confronted by carnage!
I just couldn't figure out what had happened - there was dried wine splattered across the floor boards, but no empty bottle, or broken glass. Wine splatters had even got onto one of the dining room chair seats. It was a mystery
I did a video call with Justin - and showed him, and he was similarly perplexed. I then started going through all of the wine bottles in the rack, and eventually found...
the culprit - it was a bottle of Huntsman's Handshake (made by some non professional wine maker friends). We assume that the wine had kept fermenting in the bottle, it had got too hot one day, and then BANG! - the cork shot out with the wine fast behind - creating the "crime scene"
The question was - would we be able to get the stains out? I certainly hoped so, although Helen said it would make a good story if we couldn't
As it was - Fiddes hard wax oil which Ian the floor sander had used worked a treat protecting the floorboards, so I was able to sponge it off with hot water and dishwashing detergent. Thank goodness!
After this Helen and I dropped around to Terry's and had a morning coffee
Then back to the house, and a tour of the garden
The kiwi fruit vines were looking quite parched (not happy about that)
There was an ant nest in the orchard
Bloody rainbow lorikeets ate pretty much all my apples
There was a strange new crack in the orchard gate post
Some of my new plants had died (not happy about that either)
The bloody couch grass was taking over some of the beds
Monday, and another beautiful day, so breakfast out in the rotunda
It really is so pleasant sitting out there - admiring the garden
Invited Terry around for morning tea. Brought out the big guns ie leaf tea, silver tea pot and jug, home made biscuits etc
There was a leak in the orchard tap - which was why the 1st kiwi fruit was doing so well (in comparison with the others). I had tried to take off the watering computer, but couldn't budge it. Terry however could, and once it was off the tap could be turned off properly, so hopefully no more puddles there
And then the tidy up/clean up
Decluttered both the scullery and the back veranda (forgot to take photos)
Michaela was very good, and did the dishes all the time - I'd told her that was her job, as her Mum and I provided the food etc.
We all dropped into Bridgewater again to find/see the elusive platypus - on the way back to Melbourne No such luck, it was another sunny hot day, and there were lots of people at the water hole, went back to the fishing platform - but nothing, the platypus remained elusive
Maybe next time...
