The African Queen

I finished 'The Horse Whisperer' the other day. I confess I choked back tears more than once in the latter stages of this book.

Lib went to a market Sunday before last, I think at Berwick. She came home with a book for me, 'The African Queen' by CS Forester, which she picked up for two three dollars. Now it's strange what can come back to you after more than 50 years but my response was immediate.

"I read that at school at Malvern Grammar as an English text, it's a great book. And I can tell you a line that is on page 84."

I flicked to page 84 and sure enough I was right. I'll cut to the line, it completed the chapter, this at the time Rose and Charlie Allnut became physically intimate.

"put her arms round Allnut's slight body and press him to her breasts while he did his will- her will- upon her."

Don't get me wrong, I'm not turning into a silly old smut. It's just that I had this flashback to my youth with amazing clarity. You can imagine how that line excited the 12 or 13 year old boys in 1964 or 65.

I look forward to reading it again but I've started another book, 'Unholy Trinity' by Denis Ryan and Peter Hoystead. This is Denis Ryan's story of his pursuit of paedophile priest Monsignor John Day while he was a detective in Mildura and how his efforts to have Day prosecuted were thwarted at every turn by the heirarchy of the Catholic Church and Victoria Police. I'm only 25 pages in but it's spine chillingly scary that such evil could exist and be protected. I bought this book through Booktopia after seeing it on the internet somewhere.

I love reading books. I can't imagine myself ever being bored or unhappy or dissatisfied with life, whatever happens, so long as I can read books. I find my mother's predicament, failing eyesight, most unpallatable. She has not been able to read books or print- unless it's abnormally large- for some time.

The weather has been fine and warm for a week and I have been busy with garden tidying and putting a coat of stain on the house. In spare time that is. I got honey of the bees for Leanne to extract, manna gum I think. Work has been pretty full on too. Bring on tomorrow, I have a 45 minute massage session booked in the afternoon with my Lisa at Belgrave Chiropractic and I can hardly wait, so good does it make me feel, during and after. Had my 7th Abatacept injection tonight. It must be doing me good, because despite being sore around the ribs and shoulders, I seem to have more mobility these last few weeks and more energy. I've surprised myself with my productivity and general higher spirits.