So Long 2018

What a year. A bit of a pig really, with Lib's cancer and treatment, but as I said to my niece Annie's husband Brett 20 years ago as he contemplated going into self employment, and which he reminded me of on Christmas Day, "Don't expect it to be beer and skittles all the time."

Brett has been successful in business, window tinting cars. He's a one man band in the cut throat car/ after sales business, but by doing it well and being brave, reliable and determined he has prospered. He left school early and went out and had a go, doing a number of jobs before finding a tinter boss who taught him the skills. Good luck to him.

Christmas Day was good, lunch enjoyed at the farm, and the evening meal of roast turkey at home, Lib, me, Gord and Rob. Gord put on his Vincent Price Dr Phibes movie which was most amusing.

Boxing Day was restful, I went to the farm after picking elderflowers in the creek in Emerald for the herb people, then did half an hour or so of whippering long grass and then watering young stuff. It was warm to hot, Christmas Boxing Day and the next couple mid 30'sC.

Morning of the 27th I rang Jax Tyres in Bayswater, where Gord got new tyres recently, to get a  price to compare with two I had got in Emerald and Monbulk just before Christmas, having noticed a front tyre had scrubbed out badly on the Kangoo. They had a special on, 4 tyres for the price of 3, which came out with alignment and balancing at $60 below the Emerald price and $200 below the Monbulk price. They could do me that afternoon so with no customers of my own to have to pick for I got the job done and shopped at the FTG Aldi on the way home,watering again at the farm as it was quite hot still.

Friday I enjoyed a lovely quiet morning at home then did a little bit of sowing at the farm, dill coriander and calendulas, then watered, and tied up tomatoes. I don't know what happened to my earlier efforts to grow dill and cori in the spring. They came up strongly, along with some allissym, then progressively yellowed off and disappeared. It was not for lack of water. I figured there was some virus or something in the soil, perhaps introduced by bought straw mulch I had put there previously. All my garlic died off too, just rotted. Never have I seen that before. Sure I have failure growing things from seed now and again, but always there's explanation such they dried out or weeds beat me or slugs and snails, but this was weird. They got to about an inch high then just stopped, yellowing and diminishing till gone completely. I have sowed in the same place again but as of Friday nothing had yet shot. We had light rain Saturday night, now it's getting hot again I think I can rely on Jod to water till I go back which may be tomorrow.

It has been the best break from work at this time of the year that I can remember. Our main wholesaler has said he's not coming till Wednesday and only wants a small amount, and the herb people are not coming till Wednesday too. Other customers are taking a longer break so it has been blissfully restful, allowing me to catch up on some whippering, weeding and cutting back at home, but leisurely at comfort zone pace. I've sowed some broccolli and silverbeet seed hopeful for planting out seedling late Jan early Feb. Good fun stuff.

I didn't take my methotrexate medication last week, so that I could indulge in wine and other good cheer between Christmas and today, which I have most enjoyed. Back to good habits today, no grog till Friday night, but I'm tempted to stay off the medication and see how I go with just the weekly injection.

Good news is the painful back I have been suffering for the past month has eased. On Saturday night I was hot in bed and fitfully dreaming I think lying with my right leg outside the bed. I semi woke up with the early morning cooling and lifted my leg back into the bed to get under the sheet. As I did I was aware of a big clunk in my lower back towards the left hip which was where most of the pain had been. Since then I have improved dramatically. Maybe the exercises I was doing and Gord's massaging loosened things up and the semi sleep manoevre did the trick. I'm still being careful as it's still a bit tender and I aim to keep up the exercises people have suggested.

Happy New Year to you. I bought a thunder jacket for Pip in preparation for the fireworks, and a cat box to lock her in if necessary, as she likes to hide. The thunder jacket had a bit of a workout on the weekend and it seemed to work but it was not big thunder.

Christmas Eve

Well I made it. It's Christmas Day in under an hour. I've limped to the line, a crook back this last couple of weeks, quite painful when it started, slowly recovering over a week or so, now bad again.

Today I tidied up here and there, visited three good friends, Dulcie, Amanda, and Lindy and Ian, giving them honey and chocolate or wine. Dulcie has sold her unit in Gembrook and probably will be leaving, she's looking for rental accom somewhere this side of Melbourne and she will need it by mid Feb when she has to vacate. I will miss her but will keep in touch and no doubt I'll visit her. Amanda is having Christmas with her parents in Melbourne, also her sisters and one of her daughters. Her other daughter is overseas, Prague now. Lindy and Ian are going to Melbourne, to lunch with Lindy's mum Faye, who is now in her nineties and also a long standing friend, at a restaurant. These friends have been helpful and encouraging to me in different ways, during a difficult year. Them and many others who I have not visited today or lately but I'm fortunate with my friends, that I have many, and that they are such good people.

Tomorrow is for family. Again I'm fortunate. Good family. We'll lunch at the farm with Elvie, Meredith, Roger, Jod, Annie and Brett and their three kids. Ella and Evie are growing so fast, doing so well in secondary school, and Toby making good progress at primary school. Rosie, Mat and young Grace will not be there, they are with Mat's family this year.

Then it's home here for Christmas dinner, just the four of us. Nice. Robbie's friend Hao isn't coming, he's Chinese origin and doesn't do Christmas, and I think he feels he'd be intruding. No so, he's most welcome, but I understand how he feels.

Lib's sisters and their kids are doing their Christmas thing independently of us, in Portarlington Bairnsdale and lakes Entrance. I remember fondly the days when we Chritsmassed with the Meeks Bells and Currans but as time goes on kids grow up and have new family connections and so it is.

I did a bit of whipper snipping at the farm and at home today and feel happy that I did, crook back and all. Funny thing is the whippering didn't worry the back, it's bending low that's worst, like putting boots on.

Twelve minutes to Christmas Day. Must be off, dose up on ibuprofen and hit the sack.

Felize Navidad!

Pre Christmas Update

In today's mail there was a card from my good friend Nicky Bridges. It contained some Bridges family news as it does every year and Nicky finished off saying that I hadn't put up a post for several weeks so she hopes all is OK. She added she still enjoys reading the blog.

Sorry Nick that I have let the blogging slip lately. The last couple of months has been a bit blurry. I have been very busy at work. October Nov and Dec is our peak season. Spring blossom and beech foliage mainly, but many other smaller requests also pop up for things like variegated pitto, ivy, geranium, rosemary and lately spruce and holly, and with the grass and weed growth and odd jobs round the traps I am too tired at night to do blogging justice. Many has the day been in this period when I have intended to post but after a bath and dinner and a bit of TV I'm too tired to do justice.

Tonight, spurred by Nicky, I have dosed up with coffee and I'm having a go. Yes a tumultuous six weeks or so it has been since my egg idiosyncracy was revealed. There was news I could have told at that time but omitted to. There was a memorial morning tea held in honour of my friend Jane Tilley on a Saturday morning in October at John's Hill lookout on the west side of Emerald. It was a beautiful setting with views to the north to Warburton Ranges, east to Gembrook, and south to Western Prt Bay. It was lovely to meet some of Jane's relatives and friends and hear of their great admiration for this wonderful lady. So glad I attended, given that Big John only told me about it in a phone message the previous evening. It was fully catered and well organized, and apparently John used to take Jane up there now and again on their way back from doctor's visits etc. She loved it for its peace and scenic splendour.

We nearly lobbed on Nicky and John's door step last weekend. We went to Wangaratta Saturday to visit our friend's Owen and Diane M and had a nice stay. Sunday morning the plan was to visit John and Nick on the way home at Claremont then go through the old haunt Greta to pick up the main road home. Alas, after visiting the cemetery to see the memorials to Lib's parents and some other friend's who are buried there, and then going to Glenrowan to see Oand D's son Patrick's house, the time had got away and we went on home. Little Pip who was being babysat in Gembrook had done an escape trick in the thunderstorm and although I knew she was now safe I wanted to get home asap. Sorry Nick, we'll catch you next time.

The weekend before I hurt my back on a gardening job, digging out and removing big old agapanthus. On the Sunday night spasms developed, making in hard to get up out of a chair or car seat. Consequently the next week was difficult doing my picking but with the help of anti inflammatories and careful management and prayers to God I got through. It still grabs here and there and putting on socks and boots is hard but thank goodness it didn't deteriorate and there has been slow improvement, I'm almost moving normally.

During November we had a new oven, gas cook top and range hood installed, all working well. We have been blessed with good rain. About 150mm November, another 25 mm early December, and early this morning it teemed, I have not yet learned how much we had, my friend Glen will let me know. It has been so fortunate that I have not had to run around watering the things I have planted autumn winter and spring.

Gotta go now, tiredness winning out. Lib is well but easily fatigued and spirit down a bit, all natural considering the onslaught she has endured. They did warn that these side effects may take months to pass. She has been cleared not to see her radiologist for twelve months.

Merry Christmas to my friends. May you have peace, joy, love and good health.

Lib's hair is growing back. I had to send a photo to Police, trying to organize police check (every three years) online. Driving me nuts, been sending ID stuff every night, not there yet. Have to photograph documents and upload to submission. Bit hard for this old fellow. They rejected earlier one because she blinked.