It’s been almost two weeks since I last walked on the beach. I’m pleased to say it’s still there, and still beautiful. I only hope the seagulls hadn’t been waiting for me all that time.
I had meant to blog way back on Mother’s Day – that’s the second Sunday in May in Australia – the 10th May this year. Believe it or not, I’ve been pretty busy since then.
The weather that day was glorious – unless you are a farmer waiting for autumn rain – and we made the most of it with a lunch on our back balcony, sharing a bottle of white wine and a seafood platter.
Actually, we had our lunch on the Saturday, as Bill had to leave on the Sunday and go away on a mercy mission for a few days. It all fell within the allowable guidelines, which are ever-so-slightly being eased.
By the way, I don’t eat oysters. Bill managed the lot. And in case you’re wondering, yes, I did embroider the tablecloth. In another lifetime. No longer in my repertoire.
Before we left on our road trip at the beginning of March, I had an asymmetrical haircut. While we were away, the long side decided to go madly, flyaway, curly – and it was driving me mad. Given that we live in a complex with aged-care attached, by the time we returned, our operator had pre-empted lock-down restrictions and shut all our communal areas – including the hairdresser. So, I didn’t bother to find out if any others were still operating (which they were at that time). I just got out Bill’s hair clippers and chopped the lot off.
Tee-hee. That was two months ago and my normally fast-growing hair is taking some time to grow back. That’ll happen when the biggest comb in the set is only a #4.
You can also tell from this photo that I haven’t quite got the selfie angle down pat.
And so ends another day in paradise . . .
Hope you are all staying safe, healthy, and, happy.
The Reluctant Retiree 
All is well here. That lunch looks wonderful, and that is a beautiful table cloth. 🙂
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It was scrumptious and did us for two meals. We had the (little) lobster that night, grilled (I think you say broiled?), and I made a sauce of mayo, cream, brandy and mustard, with melted butter on top.
I still have a few pieces of embroidery, but mostly I stitched for others to give as presents. So it’s nice to have this piece, and useful, too.
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Grilled and broiled are two different things to me. Broiling is heat from above at greater than 500 degrees F, generally done in a stove. Grilling is on a barbecue grill with high heat from below from wood, charcoal or gas.
I love embroidery! 🙂
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Yes, I thought that was an area of difference. So your broiling is our grilling, and your grilling is our barbecue, bbq, or just plain barbie (with a flat nasal a if you are sending up the Australian accent). As in, “I’m gunna stick a steak on the barbie”.
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There is a lot about paradise in that story. I am not a great seafood fanatic but it did look very appetising. And I am muchly impressed by the table cloth.
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I had a photograph album of all the embroidery I had done for friends and family. I threw it out last month in a clean-up. Who but me would be interested? But I still have a few pieces kicking around the place, dating back to primary school.
That particular piece was therapy. I was off work for three months with a glandular fever-type illness. Being able to count the squares and repeat the pattern correctly gave me heart that my senses were coming back to normal, even though it’s a big thread-count so not too challenging. It’s more than 30 years old. Still holding up to a wash.
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I dunno what a thread count implies but still I am impressed.
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Only for your edification. It means how big the squares are that you have to count in order to ensure the pattern stays in the right place. Some are very fine, like linen.
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Thank you. I’ll stick to making beer.
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Wow, I thought that you’d been to the hairdressers and thought, mmm, I wonder how???? I think it looks great. Properly short like that has been a thing over here with women of about 50 before the lockdown and I thought how stylish it looked and how it made people look younger. I think it suits you very well – so, who needs hairdressers!!!
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I’m much better with it short. The long and coloured version of last year was inspired by my brother leaving me a convertible; but it got to be just such a lot of long thick bulky hair, it was bringing my face down. As for dispensing with my hairdresser – that’s a no. My cut is very uneven and there is a chunk in the front missing altogether. Things are slowly re-opening here. Another six weeks and I might have something for her to work with.
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Yes, I agree with your comment about longer hair bringing your face down. It definitely doesn’t help anybody really as everything goes south with age!
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And now I’m stuck with that photo on my driving licence for another ten years.
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Oh how annoying.
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Your hair looks fabulous, Gwen. I wish I could wear mine that short, but with long hair I definitely do not miss a hairdresser. What a lovely lunch and tablecloth. And view. So soothing to be able to see the ocean.
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I’m forever changing my hair, and this time last year I had a much longer bob, but I am better off with it short. There is just so much of it. The ocean today is wild. We’ve just been watching the pilot try to board a cargo ship with an empty hold and it is rocking and rolling. He’s earnt his money today!
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How lovely to have a view that tells a different story every day. I am amazed at how important having a view has become for me during this pandemic. Although our view in Abu Dhabi isn’t of the ocean, at least it is a view of the water channels cutting through the various island making up the city. And sunrise. I am so grateful to being able to watch the sun rise. Take good care of yourself.
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Everyone who walks in this apartment goes straight for the view. It is sensational. I always have a wry smile, as, after living here twelve years, I’m more than aware of the internal design flaws. One of them being that the balcony gets too much wind to be able to sit there all day and admire the view ! LOL.
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Another happy blog Gwen and I can vouch for that seafood platter, having enjoyed one with my family on that same day. We’re lucky to live here and be able to partake of this and other good things. Take care.
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It was definitely a feast!
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Reminds me of the sea food diet I me on. I see food and I eat it. Love your selfie.
Stay Safe,
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The first selfie attempts had too much double-chin. Must be from all that eating 🙂
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I’m envious of that sea food platter
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It fed us for two meals!
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I’ll bet
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The beach is not only there, but looking beautiful, Gwendoline! But – you are killing me with those pictures of all that seafood!! I can eat my weight in seafood and with this quarantine I haven’t had a chance to get any. Next weekend is our anniversary, so maybe I’ll get some then.❗
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I thought it would catch your eye GP. We are so lucky here. Our on-site restaurant had to close. In place of seating us, they converted to take-away and home-delivery and the platter was a Mother’s Day special. They have even set up a little grocery store where the tables and chairs used to be.
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Innovation and adapting – good for them!!
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Love your hair Gwen & the beautiful table cloth brings back wonderful memories to.
Thinking of you both, take care & stay safe
Lorraine x
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Great to hear from you Lorraine! What a time for Rae to finally retire, hey? Guess you made it back from Darwin before restrictions started to set in. Just as well we didn’t have a chance to catch up – you would have seen my wild and woolly hair, LOL. Xx Gwen
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Your table cloth is lovely. I did a bit of embroidering in my day. I just seemed to have more time for such things in my youth. Your lunch is not something to scoff at. In fact I’d be doing a lot of scoffing if I was at your table. You seem to be enjoying isolation in style. 👌
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Like you, I did lots of embroidery in the day. Mostly counted cross-stitch – but my eyes would not cope now even if I had the time. I remember I used to do it in the evenings even with the cat snuggled on my lap. Everything seemed so much more tranquil then. Even in this isolation my days speed by.
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I’ve given it up too. I’ve resurrected the knitting. But I’m using up wool oddments, to make hot water bottle covers for family members. 🙂
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Over the years I went from knitting myself a two-piece suit, to having to ask someone to teach me to cast on. Then my charity blanket squares kept coming out oblong. I got kicked off the team 🙂 (not really, I retired and chose another hobby).
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🤭
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That seafood platter looks scrummy!!!
Hair looks good too!
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The platter was delicious and lasted us a couple of meals. As for the hair, I should have been sensible like you and had it all professionally cropped at the first sign of trouble in the wings.
Hope you are doing great. I suppose when this is over you won’t need to go back to the office.
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