Monday 5th August.
Man I had a dreadful flight. All the way a paperback was on my knee. Really, it was not such a good flight. The seats seem to be narrower and closer together than ever before. The flight was delayed and delayed again. There was lots of turbulence.
Arrived Brisbane and as always am amazed at the number of people populating the airport. All those people waiting for a flight, boarding a flight, disembarking from a flight, eating, buying stuff, collecting baggage, checking in and being delayed by security. Somehow it all works and despite complaints, most of us get our flights on time and arrive safely at the other end.
I am always grateful for that.
Gee it’s good to be back home.
If you have seen the movie, YESTERDAY you will understand some of the lines in this paragraph.
Friday 9th August
I spent the last few days just settling back into life on the Gold Coast.
First up this morning I had an appointment at the skin clinic where a couple of biopsies were taken and sent away for checking. If things go as they usually do, I have no doubt that next week I will have a couple of surgeries to remove Basal Carcinoma cells. We have no idea when as a teenager, enjoying our days on the beach, in the sunshine that it will come back to haunt us. Some more haunted than others. If any young people read this, please learn to cover up. The old adage of SLIP on a shirt, SLOP on sunscreen and SLAP on a hat is as pertinent today as it was 30 years ago, In fact as teenagers we always thought nothing would happen to us.
How wrong we were and if only the message we want to pass on is heard and listened to by a younger generation.
I had a read back through my Blog for this week in 2007. Donnis and I took our original motorhome, the converted Toyota Coaster bus, to the Gemfest held at Rubyvale each year. We stayed in our motorhome on a friends Ruby mining lease at umm err Rubyvale. The Gemfest, is a like a local market. It takes me about 5 minutes to look quickly at whatever is on display and then another two hours of boredom waiting for Donnis to finish her detailed browsing. Thank goodness for coffee, I only wish I had my Kindle in 2007.
Saturday 10th August
Today was sunny and very windy with a distinct chill. Just before midday we drove to Main Beach. We were both surprised at the number of cars at the beach and in fact had to choose our second preferred option to find a car park. As it turned out we would have been better choosing the third preferred option to park. When we left home and discussed our walk it was with the intent of walking a few hundred metres and walking back. After a few hundred metres Donnis suggested we go as far as the sand pumping station and have lunch at the kiosk before heading back to the car.

Hmmm! That is about 5klms along the sand and will take about an hour or even more.

So that is what we did. We had fish n chips at Seaway Kiosk. Originally I thought we would share a serve of fish n chips and take it to a bench seat somewhere and struggle with the wind. As it turned out we ate in the bright and cheerful dining area, drinking lots of water for the return walk.
About 300 metres into our walk I started having back spasms and found it too difficult to continue. Donnis trudged on alone while I gingerly dawdled over the sandhills to The Spit and sat and walked slowly until Donnis arrived just over an hour later.

We quite enjoyed the walk and the lunch so will keep the Seaway Kiosk in mind for future lunch options.


Sunday 11th August
I went to the doctor at 9am as I have had a pain in my left side all this week. It seems my old friend Di Verticulitis has paid a visit. My doctor thinks 4 antibiotics tablets will clear up the inflamation. Its nice to be abl;e to see your doctor on a Sunday if you are in pain.
A last minute decision saw us driving to Narangba in the far northern Brisbane suburbs. Chris was playing a Rugby League match today. It was a long way to drive to watch his team win 56 -6 but was also an opportunity to see another part of Brisbane.
It is a very large suburb and seems very well laid out with lots of parklands and trees and green space scattered among the houses. I would not feel comfortable living there in bushfire season.