Ambling around Ayr

We got up early this morning and hit the road (got a new snazzy rental car yesterday so now I have to remember to look for the blue car!) and traveled to Ayr. I dropped Chris off at the Pioneer mill and then found my way to the house next to the Kalamia mill---I am doing much better at this navigation thing, thank goodness. It isn't like it is hard to get to these places at all but when you do it alone for the first time it is a little intimidating!
While I was mopping floors and cleaning a bit a couple guys came from the mill to fix a pipe in the kitchen where they had taken a dishwasher out but never done anything with the little part where it drained so last week when I did dishes the water drained into the cupboard below...at least i realized it and held my finger over it!!! So a little duct tape is holding it just fine until they get a hose and clamp. Nice guys and I kept telling them it wasn't a big deal at all but I guess since Chris asked about it they hopped right on it!!! What clout, huh??? Hahaha.
i went into town and found the post office and found out that the price of Australian postage going to the US went up 5 cents on the 15th so my apologies to anyone I might have sent a card or letter to with 5 cents short of postage!!! Who knew it went up?? Not me!!! So I stocked up on stamps, mailed some goodies to Aaron and headed out to shop a bit. I really like all the little shops in Ayr and I found a cool tie die place called Hippie Heaven! They had some great things and I bought a shirt--bad news is that the sizes here are different. An 8 is a 12 here so you get kind of depressed when you buy Australian clothes though I have found some that use US sizing. You just have to try stuff on and figure it out. While I was in there I asked about a place to get my hair done and she recommended a place a block away so I walked down there and made an appt. and waalaaa----I now have a new hairdresser! She did exactly what I wanted and listened to me about how I wanted it to look natural instead of the bleachy look i got the first time round here. So this will work out great to get my hair done when we come down here because I already have the car and don't have to make special arrangements, etc. Yea! It is a little thing but you ladies out there know what it is like to find the right person to do your hair!
So now I am just chilling out waiting for Chris to come home sometime. I shopped for my Operation Christmas Shoebox and of course I have one really really stuffed box but I imagine they will take some from it if they need to put in someone else's. I just can't ever limit myself!!! I guess I could do two......
Oh and if any of you have been following our satellite tv installation saga-----the guy was a no show yesterday. The company called me at 5 to see if he was there and I had gotten no call or anything. She said she would track him down and call me back. You guessed it--no call. I called when i got here this morning and the guy called me back and said they still could not find the installer but the supervisor was on the case now......whatever that means. I missed a call later so not sure if they called me back or not and this guy was very apologetic but it wasn't his fault--no need to whinge at him!!! it will all work out but I sure would like to get it going. I checked the date we signed up and it was August 9th so I think it has been plenty of time!!!
Hope this hasn't bored you to death!!! More tomorrow if I have an adventure!

Aussie Food Terms

I thought you all might enjoy a break from all the doom and gloom of the US financial situation---I know i am pretty depressed about it . So....i am taking a break from swatting mossies (mosquitoes) that came in while they were repairing the doorknob this morning and tell you some of the Aussie food terms that I have learned since being here!
I will list the American version first and then the Australian word.

7-up = lemonade
Arugula lettuce = rocket
bell peppers = capsicum
bologna = polony, devon
bun = roll
candy = lolllies
cantaloupe = rockmelon
fine grain sugar = caster sugar
cheddar cheese = tasty cheese (and a note about this--they do not put any coloring
in their cheese so the cheddar is white which kind of threw me off for awhile!)
chicken = chook
cookies = biscuits, bickies
corned beef = silversides
custard = pudding sauce
frosted flakes = Frosties
ground meat (any kind) = mince
gum = chewies
hors d'oeuvres = nibblies (I love this one!)
jelly = jam
jello = jelly
ketchup = tomato sauce
lobster = crays/crayfish
meat pie = pie
oatmeal or any hot cereal = porridge
peanut butter = peanut paste
popsicle = paddlepop
porterhouse steak = tbone steak
potato chips = crisps
raisins = sultanas
romaine lettuce = cos
scallions = spring onions
shrimp = prawns
sodas = cool drinks, soft drinks
tangerines = mandarins

So there you go--- a few food terms for you to practice!!!

3 months here!

This picture is for my brother Mark and Dad----looks like quite the life, doesn't it??? This guy is often on the beach in the mornings when I walk and I caught him today on my camera. I imagine he would have "posed" for me had I asked but I thought it better to not disturb him and just try to take one on the sly!!! He didn't seem to have any fishies in his bag but he was just having a good time I am sure even if he was not catching anything. The thing they fish for the most off this beach is whiting.

I was so excited today because my postie (I found out his name is Jared) brought me a package! Yippee! You know how much I love to get mail and this was something that I had bought on an auction site (Like Ebay) here. I found a lady who has tons of tupperware to sell (she must be a dealer because most is new) and I got a season serve container which I have missed. I use it all the time to marinate meats and stuff and since we grill so much here I had wished I had sent mine over. But now I have one and I am going to be marinating much easier!!! I know it is silly what I miss sometimes!!!

Chris is off to Townsville today and tomorrow and then Wednesday we are going to go to Ayr and stay in the house there overnight. I might try to find someone to do my hair while I am there. I need something done BADLY!!!! The problem is trying to explain what I want done! I did get it highlighted before we moved from the hotel but it is not what I wanted at all and now I am trying to decide what I do want!!! I like it to not be shockingly blonde and that is what it is now with dark dark roots. Ick!!! So I am going to have to figure out what I want or find a picture or something!!! It is hard enough finding a new hairdresser let alone finding one in a different country!!! And they call them streaks here--not highlights! And they used a rubber cap on me which was very very weird. Pulled the hair through it instead of using one of those plastic throwaway things......I can't describe it very well but maybe it was just that shop. So I will keep you posted if I ever figure out where to go and how to tell them what I want!

Time to get some work done, laundry is going and I need to sweep and mop and do more cleaning!!! Enough excitement for you guys for one day anyway!!!! Cheers!!!

Worship Time!

Today we enjoyed worship at this little church down the road from us---Jensen Uniting Church. We were 2 of I think 17 in attendance including the Pastor---Peter Ireland. It was a great group of women who were there---poor Chris was out numbered---and they truly made us feel welcome though it was hard to not be noticed with a congregation that small. I guess we can't tease Paula about the size of her congregations anymore, can we???
The service was very casual as are most things we encounter here and the pastor played guitar for the music, had the songs put up on the overhead projector and had an interactive sermon which was nice. He is a part time pastor---has 2 churches and works 3 days a week as a water engineer so he is pretty busy all of the time. He is leaving at the end of the year from the sounds of it but we really enjoyed his message. One of his points today was that God was a party animal-----he loves to see his people having a good time!!! I loved that !
After service we went to the little fellowship area outside and shared a cuppa and some delicious cake and had great conversations. We also viewed a video about Samaritan's Purse shoeboxes as they are collecting them and it was just such a neat thing to know that something that I was active in for many years in the US is something that they do here also!!! Of course one of the clips they showed was this heart wrenching song sung by a child and I got a little teary eyed---at the end someone else was sniffing so we shared the kleenex box and joked about it so at least I was in good company!!! When we left one of the ladies came up and gave me the roses that had been on the table and i was really touched. It may be a very small group of people but we were made to feel welcome and that was such a wonderful feeling.

We stopped at the grocery store to get a few things on the way home and then came home and Chris grilled some marvelous steaks and we ate outside. It is so beautiful today---the humidity has dropped a bit and it is very breezy. Chris is still napping and we are looking forward to much more relaxation today!!!

Remembering......

It hardly seems possible that it has been a year since Chris' beloved mom passed from this life into the arms of our loving Lord. She was so happy in this picture when we celebrated her 70th birthday with all her family and friends surrounding her. The last few years of her life were not always comfortable but she still was there for all of us whenever we needed her. I was very fortunate and blessed to have had her as a mother in law and loved her very much. It is so difficult to let go of those that we love---there is not a day that goes by when our thoughts do not turn to those who played important roles in our lives who are no longer with us physically but it helps to know that their roles in our lives have changed us and shaped us into who we are today. Today make sure you tell someone that you love them and if your parents are still alive make sure that they know how much they mean to you. Life is too short to not appreciate those who make a difference in our lives.

Saturday Adventures

Looking at Castle Hill and Townsville from the northern area.

On the way to Shelly Beach area

World War II gun emplacement/observation point in Pallarenda area

The Rock Pool off the Strand

Looking down the beach at The Strand

Another shot of the Rock Pool

We had a splendid day!!! We got up and headed out into town where we ate brekkie at the Rock Pool restaurant off The Strand. Lots of folks swimming, lounging, bbq'ing and just generally enjoying a perfect day outside. We walked around a bit after we ate and watched some lifeguard lessons (we think) and just totally enjoyed the beautiful day. We then headed north of the city to the Pallarenda Cove area and found some places to explore a little bit more. They do kiteboarding there because of the calmer surf and we saw several out but didn't stop to take in the sights today much. We will save that for another day. We did stop and hike a bit through a couple areas and there were tons of trails and beach areas that we will go back to later. I was glad to get out in the fresh air a bit and enjoy some time with Chris -----I know he is usually pretty tired by Saturday so it was nice to do it at a leisurely pace today.
Now it is back to Saunders Beach for a nap and then a walk on the beach at low tide, grilling steaks on the barbie for dinner and maybe a little movie tonight! Life doesn't get much better than this. More tomorrow!

Something that makes me go "hmmmmmm"

So something has been bothering me when I go to the grocery store is the fact that the eggs are not in a cooler of any kind----they are just in the regular grocery aisle. Is that something that we Americans just "do" or what??? It makes me feel like I am getting bad eggs. Any thoughts????

One other thing that I found that I like here is the way they do their pillowcases. It is a little thing I know but they make a little flap so you can kind of tuck your pillow in under the flap so it doesn't slide out when you move it or fluff it or whatever. It is a good design I think.

That is all the revelations I have for this day!

Another house....more to clean and organize!

My nifty ice cube maker----teeny little trays in this little compartment, turn the little lever 110 degrees and about 20 cubes fall into the bin below!!! Awesome!!!

The view off my veranda at the Kalamia house.

Smoke from the stacks is a good thing----looking at the Kalamia mill from the front yard of the "company" house.

The manager's house at Kalamia.

This house has turtles, not frogs....though I bet there are frogs too!

I thought I would post a few pictures today so you could see some of the things I am seeing today! Chris and I headed out early, stopped by the Pioneer mill to pick up a car for him to use today so I could have the other car, came to the house in Kalamia and I have spent the day here. This is the company house and we have been kind of using it to store stuff a bit that we had shipped over because while we were in the temporary housing we had no place at all to put stuff. Anyway, we decided to go ahead and use this house a couple times a week maybe so Chris does not have to drive so far on some days and this is the first time we have actually used it!!! His schedule is so erratic that it has been hard to plan when he would be here and when it made sense to stay down here but tonight he has a dinner meeting so it will save the hour and 15 minute drive back to Townsville late.

So...I spent the day cleaning and trying to get things organized. We had a bed, table and chairs and a futon delivered a couple weeks ago so we got the bed put together and I have it all made up so now we are ready to go! I took the car into Ayr and did some shopping and didn't get lost or turned around or anything! I am learning!!! Ayr is a nice little town and they have a lot of really cute shops that I will be exploring later but today I had to get stuff to clean with and just a few things for the kitchen. In the afternoon I picked up palm fronds from all over the yard----worked for over an hour hauling stuff and it looks better and will be easier for them to mow now I think. I found out that CSR used to have gardeners that looked after each of the manager's houses---even washed cars and polished silver if you wanted!!! Obviously that does not happen anymore but I guess in the past it did!!!

It is raining now which means all the mills will be shut down ---they can't harvest the cane and crush if it is raining so all the CSR folks will be in bad moods tonight I am sure. I haven't been watching the weather so I don't know if this was predicted or not but it really is a nice gentle rain and it is cooling everything off nicely so I don't mind! I worked up a sweat outside working! Some honest labor!

We will be getting on the road early tomorrow as Chris has to be at one of the other mills early----I think he is going to be ready for the weekend--this has been kind of a hard week on him so hopefully we will be able to do something to relax a bit. He works so hard all week and when the weekend comes he is pretty ready for it.

I brought some DVD's to watch on my laptop so after I eat a frozen dinner I am going to go hop on the bed and start watching! Chris will probably be late getting back so I have to find something to occupy myself till he gets home!!!

Australian Attire

i know the past couple blogs have been pretty boring! Sorry! Other than my colorful Carla the frog friend not much to report so something I saw today made me think that I should let you know how folks dress down here!

After my walk on the beach this morning I saw a man brushing his german shepherd right by where I go up and down to get to the beach and seeing the dog made me know that he was our neighbor that we have not met yet so I took the chance to go up to him and introduce myself. His name is Clive, his dog is Emma and his wife who I did not meet is Jane. He is an older gent and Rod was right when he told me about the one neighbor who mows his yard in a G string. Well, it wasn't QUITE a G string but close to it and trust me....not a good look. Anyway, he was very nice---as I find most folks are if you just take the initiative and make a point of being interested and he was happy to talk to me. At one point he did ask if I was American.....I can't fool many people here. So after I walked back up to the house I got to thinking about how people dress here and how it kind of cracks us up. Basically anything goes.

The business folks tend to dress up in suits and many of the places that I have gone they have "uniforms" of sorts. The tellers in the bank wear suits with the bank logo on the shirt but they are dressier than just wearing a polo shirt with the logo on it. Someone has suggested that a lot of the places have uniform shirts because it asures that they look presentable since Australians seem to be so casual in their dress.

Most of the tradespeople wear hi-vis (florescent) shirts. When Chris is in the mills he wears his great pumpkin shirts and jeans (bright orange shirts with reflective strips) and his boots as they have to wear 100% cotton, long sleeves, etc. A lot of the tradespeople wear the long sleeved shirts and shorts. What cracks us up is that the younger guys wear shorts to the knees while the old blokes wear long sleeve shirts with short shorts just under their bum!!!

School kids wear uniforms complete with the hat which is considered part of the uniform.

What we have really decided is that anything goes here as far as dress other than work. What we are used to wearing is just fine here but you see everything here. A lot of things that people shouldn't wear they wear if you know what I mean. Footwear seems to be kind of optional at times----I have seen a lot of people (mostly men I would say) out shopping, walking around, whatever with no shoes and one book I read noted that that was very typical for Western Australians and Queenslanders. I still cannot get into going barefoot outside much here other than on the beach where my daily walks have morphed from wearing walking shoes to beach trekkers to now walking barefoot. There are just a few too many creepy crawlie things at this point for me to go barefoot too much around here but I guess you just watch where you walk.

So the good thing is that you can wear just about anything and fit in here! The fashions are probably similiar to the US but remember it is so warm here all the time that it is mostly beach wear and shorts and boardies. I am glad I did not send much more over than I did as I wear tshirts, polos and shorts most of the time these days! Life is good indeed!

It's BACCCCKKKKKKK!

Help! I am stuck in the toilet and I can't get out and these people keep flushing me.....

I don't think I am QUITE ready for Master Chef...

Sunday Lunch: grilled chicken with salsa, grilled pineapple, broccoli and seasoned potatoes......Great lunch but not quite as pleasing looking on the plate as they require for my new favorite tv show---Master ChefWe are spending a leisurely Sunday----we were going to go to church and then Chris bailed out on me....not quite sure what his problem was going this morning but I didn't want to go on my own so we took a long walk on the beach and he "preached" to me to make me feel like I had been at church.......as only Chris can do! Seriously, we will get there---I think he just is really exhausted mentally and physically by Sundays and wants to kind of 'cocoon" after the week and I can understand. I guess we will have to buckle down and get with it!!!!

I just heard an ice cream truck speeding down the street!! Now how anyone could get out there and get ice cream when they are going that fast is beyond me!!! Very strange ...

Chris was so happy last night----part of his reason of dragging around today as he stayed up late last night watching dvd's. We had gotten a couple new ones while we were out shopping and he got the second season of the HBO series "Rome" and he loved that show so he just kept putting discs in until he was done. I left after disc 3 I think---a little too bloody in some parts for me!!! I went and read! Anyway, he escaped our 5 channels of tv and got to watch something he liked for a bit!

This is really boring and I am sorry----I am going to go take the traditional Sunday afternoon nap and maybe I will be more inspired then!!!

Who would have thought these would be Jello flavors??/

Brush Turkey

We have a friend living in our bushes I think. Chris saw him (or her--not sure) going in the bushes by our mailbox......it is a Brush Turkey, Bush Turkey or Shrub Turkey depending on what source you look at. I don't think he will work for Thanksgiving though.
I cannot get the link option to work so if you want to see a picture you will have to type it in--not sure why it isn't working right but oh well.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c9/Australian_Brush-turkey.jpg


Great news today-----the Postie came at 7:30 am!!!! And he brought me a Tupperware Pickle Elevator that I had won on an auction on Oztion!!!! I am so excited!!! Now my pickles will be easy to access!!! It is those little things that make me happy!!! And i love my postie!!! These guys ride these little red Honda scooters and go everywhere---they drive in yards, sidewalks, jump curbs and go wherever they need to go to deliver the mail!!! Ours is a really nice guy though according to his nametag his name is Contract......I need to find out his real name I think because he is becoming my best friend since I am trying to order stuff all the time!!!

Can you tell it was a slow day here??? But the weekend is here and Chris got home early today so we had homemade pizza (yum) and are watching tv and chiling out tonight!!! Life is good!

ABC Aussie Slang

Arvo---afternoon
Bathers---swimsuit
Crack onto---to hit on someone, pursue romantically
Dog's eye---meat pie
Esky---cooler
Fairy floss---cotton candy
Gobsmacked---surprised, astounded
Hoon--hooligan
Icy pole---Popsicle
Jug---electric kettle
Kangaroos loose in the top paddock----intellectually inadequate
Lucky country----Australia, of course
Mozzie---mosquito
No-hoper---somebody who will never do well
Oldies---parents "I'll have to ask my oldies."
Perve----looking lustfully at opposite sex
Not the full quid----low IQ
Rotbag---mild insult
Seppo--American
Techincolor yawn---vomit
Uni---university
Vee Dub---Volkswagon
Whinge---complain
XXXX---beer made in Queensland---pronounced Four X
Yakka---work
Zack---sixpence---5 cents

I expect you all to start using these every day!!! I have a ton of them now so I will keep giving you more!!!

A Trip to Charters Towers

1. The "Craft" group at lunch at Naturally Good in Charters Towers
2. A section of the Charters Towers Cemetery with paupers graves
3. Chart showing the different sections of the cemetery---sections are according to religion. The Church of England section is the largest section. The Methodist section is the pink section. Others include Catholic, Presbyterian, Uniting, etc. Guess you don't want to spend eternity buried next to other denominations???? Interesting way of doing it I thought.
4. The grave of the man who discovered the first gold in Charters Towers. I think he died in 1895 or sometime around then.
5. These trees in this park were infested with these bats (they called them flying foxes) and they smelled horrible and were basically a huge nuisance in the park but what could you do about them?? They were quite impressive to see hanging from all the trees.
6. This was nicknamed the "flying fox" and was the way they used to send the money from a transaction in a store to the cashier in the back of the store who was in a little room by herself. The money and docket went in the little container and then it basically "flew" back to the cashier who made the change and sent it back. I guess this is the predecessor to the vacuum system we use at the drive ins at the banks, etc.

It has been a couple of days since I have written but when I got home last night I was just too tired from my excursion to write much that would make sense! I must be getting old or something--can't keep the pace I used to keep!!!

I rode into Townsville with Chris and met the ladies for the trip to Charters Towers. There were 8 of us that went and we had a great time. On the way there we talked a lot about what I find different here and whether I understand their phrases and slang and for the most part I do---and if I don't I ask!!! It was about an hour and half to get to Charters Towers and it really was a neat town. It was one of the major gold mining towns and full of history and really neat buildings and sights. We spent a lot of time in the museum (where the picture of the flying fox came from) and that was pretty neat to see a bit of Australian history --there was a whole room devoted to war items too so that was pretty cool to look at.

We had a nice lunch at one of the local restaurants and I ordered a colorful item---a Mouse Trap!!! Actually it was just a ham and cheese sandwich with tomato so it wasn't really a mouse......when it came the ladies told me it really wasn't a true Mouse Trap because it was not open faced. I guess they made it into a toasted sandwich at this shop and did not make it the way that these ladies thought it should be made but all I cared about was that it tasted good!!! I ended up riding back in a different car with different ladies and we had a great time. We stopped at a couple of scenic overlooks and then went to this really historic cemetery to see some of the old graves. It was pretty neat the way it was laid out because as you may be able to tell from the picture that they had it laid out according to what religion you were . All the Church of England folks in one area, all the Catholics in another and so on. And the graves were a little different too--kind of platforms instead of just headstones I guess. It was a really neat thing to be able to see some of the really old graves and there is sure a lot of history there and someplace I wouldn't mind going back to explore it more sometime.

Chris had a long day of interviews yesterday--they are interviewing for 2 site managers and he has more interviews today so he was pretty tired when he got home too so we both crashed last night. Today my dresser is supposed to get delivered so I am staying close to the house and doing laundry and cleaning--how exciting!!! But I had a great day yesterday and it was nice to get out with some people and enjoy the weather and some great history and sights!!!

Just a Day at the Beach!

Soft shell crab digging in!

Some kind of anemone I believe---you biologists out there can confirm or dispute!

The first time I have seen a living sand dollar I think!

A pretty cool dude on the beach---we put him back in the water when we were done!

This little buddy needed a new home--his shell was all cracked !!

A teeeeeeny tiny little guy!

1. 

This one is for Meredith who loved to see the designs that the crabs make on the beach. It was filled today with tons of baby crab balls! Pretty spectacular sight.

We have had such a great day today! We slept in a bit and got up and made a few calls to the States to Colleen and Bryan and Meredith, my mom and then we talked to Micah who took time away from the football game to call us at halftime!!! It was great to catch up with everyone and know that all is well in the US of A!!! Then we headed to the beach for the best walk ever! Chris printed out a chart for me of the tide times and we went out at low tide and were able to walk out really far and see a lot of neat things that we had not seen before!!! It really was neat to see some of the creatures and we had such a nice long walk and we realized that this was the first day since we have been here that we have had a day totally free to stay at home and do nothing but what we want to do!! So even though we didn't go to church we had a very spiritual day I think! We'll get there---it is just taking us some time to figure that part out! We are just so blessed to be able to be living here and seeing all the neat things that we are seeing just in our own back yard.

Chris even made breakfast/lunch/brunch whatever for me on the grill! Bacon and eggs and we found some bagels in the grocery store yesterday and bought those and even though they aren't Panera they will tide me over till December when I can get Panera!!

Chris is off to nap before he does his mill report---I guess he doesn't really get the whole day off then, does he??? And I may soon follow if my book does not hold my interest. And tonight....Australian Idol.....this is how lame our life has become! We get about 5 channels and this was one thing that we started watching and now feel that we have to follow through. Never watched American Idol but now I am hooked on Australian Idol for some reason. Can't wait to get the satellite hooked up but I think it is still going to be a couple of weeks. i think it was going to take something crazy like 7 weeks to get it done......not quite sure why......hopefully it will eventually get done or else I will be finding something else to do other than watch tv!!!

Let me know which of the pictures you like!!! And I left one off---we also saw a beautiful golf ball in the low tide waters......go figure!

They grow em big here!!!

Now I used to have some of these as houseplants but trust me--mine never grew this big even with a dose of Miracle Gro!!! This vine is all the way up the tree in the front of the house and the leaves are even bigger up towards the top where I can not reach them! Crazy!!! Needless to say things are pretty lush around here right now even though it is not the wet season. Chris and I are sitting on the veranda and he is disgusted that once again he has bushes to trim back.....we thought we had left those behind in North Carolina when we sold that house with the horrendous hollies all around but as we are looking out we see that the hedges have grown considerably in the 4 weeks we have been in the house......oh well. At least there aren't that many and they seem semi easy to trim.

We have had a leisurely day today---I woke up coughing my fool head off from this silly allergy thing I have going and just got up and made a pot of tea early and stayed up. We headed out to the mall so Chris could get a haircut, went to the luggage place and found a purse for me (Chris just does not understand that having only 2 purses is putting me in a bind!) and a great backpack for Chris for traveling. If they would have had 2 I would have gotten one too as it is the perfect answer for our plane trips----room for laptop, power supplies and cords and enough pockets to cram everything else in that you want to take on the plane with you. Hopefully they will get another one it.

We had a quick bit at the Coffee Club where they DO know how to make a decent mocha---they even put marshamallows in it if you want!! Yum! Then off to Woolworths to do the grocery shopping which always seems to take longer and cost more than I think it should but oh well. We are still in the stocking the pantry and freezer stage and since I have no wheels during the week to go shopping I try to plan things out and shop ahead. Chris is finally getting to ordering his car---a Prado which is similar to the Highlander I think. I may have gotten that wrong. We are still trying to decide what to do for me---don't really need a car all that much right now and when he is in Townsville I can have it if I drive him in so I just can't really see getting anything quite yet till things settle out a bit and we know more about what I would actually use. We are trying to be frugal at this point I guess and why spend money we don't need to??? And I am fine---if I need the car sometime we can work it out but for right now I am not really concerned about it. My feet can take me where I need to go!!

We have been watching with interest Hurricane Ike and figure by the time we get up tomorrow morning Texas will have been hit pretty hard --at least parts of it. Hopefully people have been able to evacuate and take measures ahead of time so that it won't be a repeat of Katrina in the way that things were handled. Hope you all are safe and dry!!!

This guy missed the plane to Bejiing for the Paralympics....

September 11th---Lest We Forget

http://www.jontzen.com/tribute.htm

The price of things!

Some of you have asked me about the cost of things here so I thought I would dig out one of the grocery dockets (bill/ticket) and let you know!!! Today is education day on the blog!
Of course I still have not figured out the whole metric conversion thing and neither has Aaron as he picked up a Kilo of lunchmeat for me and was amazed how much it was!!! Here is the basic conversion stuff:
liter = about a quart
kilo (kilogram) = 2.2 pounds so a pound is roughly 1/2 kilo
22 C = 70 F
27 C = 80 F

So from the grocery side of it:
Frosties (Frosted Flakes) 430 g $5.06
Sour Cream (comes in little school milk cartons!) 300 ml $1.69
Premium Mince (ground beef) kilo $6.21
Light Milk 2 L $2.79
Peanut M & M's 250 g $4.55
Button Mushrooms $9.99 kilo
Kiwi fruit .49 cents each
Peanut Butter 780 grams $7.98
Granny Smith Apples $3.99 kilograms
Eggs 18 pack large $3.99
Bananas $4.45 kilogram
Box of Brownie Mix $4.93
Campbells Soup 300 g $1.91

On the one hand some things are more expensive but a lot is basically the same as what we are used to. There has also been a huge fluctuation in the dollar (today it is way down---right around 80 cents ) so it is good to remember that as long as we are using Australian money to buy Australian products it is okay but once we have to convert to American money we lose.....bummer, huh? So anyway, that is the scoop Hope you enjoyed the prices---now figure out what is a good deal and what isn't!!!!

It's Here and It is BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It took awhile but well worth the wait in the long run....our beautiful new leather furniture complete with tags......life doesn't get much better than this!

Things That Go Bump and Screech in the Night

• One thing I can say about Australia is that you sure hear some different sounds here than you hear in the United States! it takes a bit of getting used to!!! One of the noisiest things are the parrots and cockatoos which are everywhere!! This guy was eating in our back yard and had a friend who flew off before I could get the picture taken but he was NOISY!!!!! There are always screeches and other strange noises during the day but then at night----there are more eerie sounds like the ones that wake you up from a dead sleep and you say "what the heck was that?" and "I hope it doesn't come in the house!". One of the other wild sounding birds is the curlew which is out a lot at low tide and has what the bird book describes as a "haunting , sometimes grating tone" which I would agree is pretty accurate in describing the sound! The biologists in my family would love identifying all this stuff for me but to be quite honest sometimes it freaks me out when I hear stuff at night!!! I admit it---I am a wimp when it comes to some of this nature stuff. Still waiting for the snake adventure which I have no doubt will come but hopefully I can wait awhile for that! We have our share of little lizardy like things that have crept in under the door but I can handle those guys--just chase 'em back out with a broom but haven't found any of the big goannas yet ---what the Australians call monitor lizards. They originally thought that they were iguanas--hence the name. So that is your nature lesson for today......more to come!

So Tell Me Something.....

If I DON"T want green frogs in my toilets why am I putting this stuff in them??? Sorry the picture is sideways!!!! Don't know what I did wrong!!!

Some other things I miss

1. Chex Mix
2. Amazon.com (they make it so easy to buy!)
3. my Tupperware Season Serve
   
4. My Tupperware Modular Mates (should have shipped that stuff)
   
5. Honey Mustard Pretzel nuggets
6. Bone Sucking Sauce
7. Dry Ranch Dressing mixes
   

Sunday Sadness

Had to take the boys back to the airport this afternoon---hence the sadness. I will miss them. They added a lot to the house and to my days!!! We didn't do anything really spectacular but we had fun and they ate something other than Subway and chicken parmigianna for a week! I don't think their accomodations at the uni are all that great and they have a two burner cooktop, no stove and not much other stuff to use to cook so I tried to feed them some good stuff whilst (lol) they were here.

So the rest of the week I will probably be a little melancholy but I will try to snap out of it and get motivated to get some more things done around here. Today Chris tried to fix the screen door doorknob but did not succeed because he does not have a drill so I think that may be one for the landlord to do. We bought what we thought would work after going to Bunnings and having a most non-helpful sales guy help us---I think Americans must scare him or something the way he acted!!!

Today has been a very rare overcast day and it is pretty humid out so it is not the most perfect day but I did get a decent walk in this morning---oh yea---I was walking and these people had 2 large dogs who were playing in the water. Once they saw me they made a beeline for me and about knocked me down. I must say my heart was beating a bit faster there for a bit because even though they looked like they just wanted to play you never know and they were big enough to take me out---the owners finally got them on leashes but not until I had been properly rammed into numerous times and jumped on with scratches to prove it. I must admit when I saw them coming at me full tilt I was a tad worried since they both looked as if they had some pit bull in them if not all pit bull and while I am not usually scared of dogs when they are coming running at me and there is no where to go and I don't know them....you get the picture. But all ended well and I am here to write about it so that is all that matters!

Will post more exciting news later ...when it happens. Still no frog update....I am using the other bathroom where we have yet to see one....

The weekend at last!

1. Chris enjoying his new mega grill
(it is Father's Day here on Sunday!!!)

2. Our Australian shaped hamburgers!!!

Chris was so happy to have a weekend where we didn't have to do a million things all in one day!!! We slept in a little bit and then went for a great walk on the beach. I even found 3 starfish washed up and that is the first time I have seen starfish on the beach at all.
The boys slept in and then Aaron went with us to Bunnings which is Australia's version of Home Depot/Lowes to pick up some things. We finally got a propane tank so we could use the grill and some other things that we have needed and managed to go, shop and get back in under an hour and half which is a record for us on a Saturday. Chris mowed the front yard and the boys hit the beach for a bit and I hung some pictures so it was a productive day all the way around.

The boys leave tomorrow for Melbourne and it has been so great to have them here for a week. I have loved having some more people to cook for and they are very entertaining!!! They have kept me laughing all week that is for sure. Tomorrow they are going to hit the beach again for one last tan and then I am going to make them pancakes before we take them to the airport. I will probably be all glum tomorrow night after they leave. But life goes on.

On a parting note---little froggie has gone back in where we can't find him....Chris checked the screen on the vent and it is in place so as he said this guy is a "pre-existing condition" and came with the house and most likely been there for a long long time. Well fine---but he needs to vacate!!!! Chris has his frog grabber gloves all ready in the bathroom ready to grab him.....more details to follow.

He's BACK!

I never knew that I would hear the screeching sound that I heard this morning. Evidently green frogs do not like to be prodded with toilet bowl brushes......details to follow.

Things We Miss

1. Ivory soap
2. Panera bagels or any good bagel
3. Christopher and Banks (ask Dad since I had stuff sent to him to get at Christmas!)
4. Uncle Ben's Wild Rice Mix (can't make Grandma Kate's casserole without it)
5. Reese's cups
6. Hershey's Kisses
7. Crisco (they don't have anything like it...just blocks of lard in the cooler next to the butter)
8. Flavored liquid coffee creamer---this one is killing me!!! They do have those teeny little cups of it in the grocery coffee aisle but they NEVER have french vanilla and a package of 10 costs $3.50!!!!!! I have found it a couple of times but didn't stock up and I should have!!!!
9. Secret deodorant
10. Lipton onion soup --my roasts won't be the same
11. Special K with chocolate
12. Bath and Body Works

Some things we like better here:
1. Kleenex---they are huge and softer!!!
2. Chocolate---much better quality---must be due to the sugar cane!!!

Still working on the lists---will add to as we go along and discover!!!!

Just Hanging Out!

1. Two Ninjas putting together the awesome BBQ

2. Aaron and Thomas testing out the waters

3. Lounging inside, watching movies in our deluxe furniture

So you can see what our guests have been up to this week so far!!! Actually they have been a great help in getting some stuff done including getting the surround sound set up, the internet and then the wireless for the dsl, and putting the bbq together which was a major major job from the sounds of the hammering and banging coming from the back porch intermingled with the strains of Motown !!! Funny funny guys!!! But it has been great fun having them here, cooking for them and taking them places!!!

We were all so disappointed yesterday because we thought our living room furniture was to come---4 pm came and went and no truck so I finally got a call through and they informed me that it was NEXT Wednesday that we would get it. So somewhere along the lines Chris got the message turned around so it is back to the beach chairs and the cane/rattan furniture that I had the boys move out for another week. Ah well. At least we have something to sit on.

Today we are homebound as Chris is back from his trip and has the car but that is okay---I think the boys want to sun a bit and walk the beach and I am happy just to be here!!! I did manage to go pick Chris up last night, after dark, in a place I had never been before and managed around all the construction so I am getting much braver and better!!! One of the guys that works with him (or for him--not sure) brought him back and had me meet them in a parking lot at a hotel and drive thru beer dock but it worked and I did just fine, thank you very much!!! And he got back much earlier than I thought he would so that was a nice surprise too. Chris rode down with his boss and said that he even offered to fly us back to make sure our house was okay if need be so I think that was a very generous offer but I think our realtor is handling things and we should be okay. We will see come September 15 when he inspects it!

The weather has been a little overcast the past couple of days and it looks as if the sun is coming out now so I am going to get ready to go for my walk on the beach! The funny thing is that whenever I do my walking I usually see about 5 people and 6 dogs---everyone has a dog or two and I guess that is what you do if you live at the beach. I get the feeling that no one likes cats at all because they have so many feral cats around. Weird, huh?

Not much else to write but I am looking for some kind of adventure today and will post later if I find something worthy of posting!!!

I finally have decent internet!!!!! Thank you, Aaron!

Finally got the internet dsl set up in the house today thanks to Aaron! I am going to try to put a video on here from the Billabong that Aaron took and hopefully it will load this time!!! Enjoy!

Frog update

Since I know you all have been hanging on the edge of your seats looking forward to the frog extraction pictures and description---I hate to disappoint but I am afraid I will. No pictures were taken and Aaron and Thom took matters into their own hands---they sprayed toilet bowl cleaner up under the rim ( I know, I know....), did a full flush and the buddy fell into the bowl and flushed away.....and the cries from the bathroom were "wow--he was big!". Not quite the way I wanted to handle it but not sure how else I would have done it since they are pretty clingy---you can't even see them up under the rim because I guess they just flatten out or something. So a sad end and I wish I could have helped him ...maybe the next one....which I am sure there will be many.

1. Kanga, Roo, Thom and Aaron
2.Mama and Baby
3. More Mama and Baby
4. Aaron and Crusher
5. Beth Ann and Bindi
Some of our pictures from the Billabong Sanctuary and hopefully more pictures and a video to come!!!