Time to get re-acquainted

It's been a long, long time since I posted on this blog. A lot has happened. We have been back from overseas for two years. Our involvement with WAMA (Wildlife Art Museum of Australia) has accelerated in the last twelve months. It's an exciting project. More of that in future posts.

The most exciting news for me, today, is that two days ago my friend David and I managed to secure tickets to the Prince 'A Piano and a Microphone' tour - next week - at the State Theatre in Melbourne. The four shows for Melbourne are limited seating (about 2,000) and all shows, as well as the four shows in Sydney, sold out within an hour. Prince playing a selection of his songs on a piano. No guitars, no band. Just the Purple One, his custom-built piano and a microphone. And probably some smoke effects. David and I are experiencing the sort of 'facepalms' 'OMG' excitement that is so unusual for us both...not.

So I thought this was a good subject to re-start this blog with. It has to be a once-in-a-lifetime event. The tickets were expensive. It didn't stop us though. I had a similar (but not so incredibly excited) buzz when I went to see the Jean-Paul Gaultier exhibition at NGV last year.

So, what can I add as an appropriate picture?

what happened to 2014?

Well, there you go. A whole year and more gone and no blogging. I've just ticked myself off. I want to keep this blog as a record of our activity at home and we have some interesting updates.

Back in late 2014, Peter and I came upon a display in the community space, just a couple of doors from our favourite cafe. Pete recognised a couple of people he hadn't seen for a long time.

The display was for the yet-to-be-completed Wildlife Art Museum of Australia. WAMA's patron is none other than Glenda Lewin (nee Smith). Within a very short time we were both captivated by the passion and vision of Glenda and her team of volunteers. Needless to say we are now volunteers.

After a couple of events for WAMA we realised that we now know why we're still in Stawell.

WAMA has brought many people together and many of them are old friends and acquaintances. Now we're making new friends and the immediate future looks bright and promising. We also have plans to go back overseas in 2017, but there's much to do before then. Now I will pause and pop in a few pics.

On Volunteers' Day we spent some time outside making clay seed pods and worms

Neil Macumber, Maryanne Jess and Glenda Lewin

Pete pulling out deadly nightshade on the WAMA site

It's been a long time

I've neglected this blog for a long time. May, I think. Shortshanks and Longshanks keep me busy, especially on our trip. Things need a bit of tidying up here so I'm gonna start tonight. I'm in the kitchen of Little Pudding Cottage in Looe, Cornwall.
For starters I'm going to put up some photos of me. There have been some big changes in my life this past twelve months. Time for indulgence.

a celebratory cup of tea

Yes, he did it! Paul Longster made it to the start of the Everest Marathon yesterday, complete with chest infection, and completed the course in 8 hours! That ain't bad folks, as the winner did it in four hours! Now we're waiting for results and pictures of course, and we know that Paul has a three-day trek out before he can fly home! What an inspiration!

Here he is:

haven't been here in a while for a cuppa

What a pathetic title! I am a bit ho-hum glum, one week after my radiotherapy treatment finished, and I have been incredibly sore, tender and VERY red, particularly closer to the armpit. The nurse gave me a pot of Sorbeline with Lignocaine to bring home (she knew something I didn't) and it has been a blessing.

I am trying to keep motivated by thinking about tasks to do with our big trip overseas in less than three months. We're quietly putting a lot of stuff away so the poor people who take care of our place while we're not here don't have to dust so much. I wouldn't want to dust it. I don't want to dust it; I'm not a great duster. 

So, at the moment we're thinking of our friend Paul in the UK who is about to compete in the Tensing-Hilary Everest marathon (tomorrow). It's been a tense time as many people have been airlifted out as they are too ill to compete. Paul had a cold, but the latest news is that he's higher up and feeling better. So my energies, mostly mental ones, are with him on Everest, supporting him for something that he has wanted to do for a long, long time. I will post again about this when we get some news.

Now for that cuppa...

coffee with friends

I have had my first week of radiotherapy, and I'm home for the weekend. It was a full-on week as on the first day it was a media event and I was interviewed for WIN news (Ballarat) and for the Ballarat Courier. I won't go into it here, but it was exciting, nerve-wracking and ultimately a great thing to do. The staff were all excited about the new equipment and space. The new Cancer Centre doesn't open officially until July.
I had a couple of dinners out with friends, which was nice, and  a day out with two Davids.
More of this soon with some pictures.

a time for us

I heard a young man sing tonight on TV in a show called The Voice. It's compelling viewing, manipulative and thoroughly enjoyable and a real tear-jerker. The young man (30 I think) sang 'A Time for Us' (Un Giorno Per Noi) from Franco Zefirelli's 1960s Romeo and Juliet. I fell in love with the song, the movie, the young actors, everything about it at the time. I was a teenager and like most teenagers developed a crush on Leonard Whiting (Romeo) and Olivia Hussey (Juliet). The song stayed with me forever. Tonight it was sung with a conviction, heartache, turmoil and absolute power. All the judges banged their buzzers and turned around. But the first to do so was Ricky Martin, who only had to hear three notes to commit himself. It was spine-tingling.
His name is Luke Kennedy. Remember that name...