MERRY CHRISTMAS

Merry Christmas to all the lovely Lords and Ladies of the land!
I hope it has been a wonderful few days off for all of you - Christmas blessings to you all.
From Lord Arek and Lady Renata

I shouldnt be working so hard!

I should be enjoying myself shouldnt I?
I shouldnt be worrying about where the next dollar comes from and were I will be heading in a years time?
I was supposed to be looking at a comfortable, easy road to my last working years.
But that has gone belly up and now I am one of the rest of the mob in the colonies where we need to get out of our comfort zones and explore the unknown realms of running your own business.
I am looking forward to the high expectations that come with untapped potentiality of tomorrow - that how I need to view it "untapped potential" because in fact, that is what it is.
Each day can and will bring new opportunities I just have to look for them.
Would a secure job, easy work, comfort zone living be more appreciated as I head into my 54th year of life?
Yes.
But thats not what I have.
I have insecurity, hard work and am constantly pushing outside my comfort zone.
I strive to swallow my anxiety and push through even though I love what I do right now it still raises issues about my feelings of self worth, made especially more vulnerable by being at an age where I am no longer "young" and sexy.
So I am working hard, every day striving to anchor myself  - lets see how this goes.

Halloween is coming

I am a bit of a fan of Halloween and all of the kitchy stuff that goes with it. I love that even though it really isnt our festival and it is about summer going and winter coming which is back to front for the Colonies we still allow ourselves to enjoy the ghosty and ghouly night. I have always made sure that I have lollies for trick or treaters and this year I am holding my very own Halloween party complete with fancy dress. I am very much looking forward to it. Are you doing anything for Halloween?

Another year older but not much wiser!

Well there goes another year.
Now I am 54 and hell, when I was 18, I would have thought that 54 was close to death!
Now at 54 I am going, hell, I still have so much to see and do.
So health and happiness are the most important things.
I am over buying clothes, gadgets, things...which come and go, wear out and become obsolete.
Experiences are gold and if I had my choice I think I would travel and see the world, experience the world - eat bread, cheese, drink wine and relax in parks and gardens all over the world.
I would see the pyramids, climb the Eiffel Tower, see Yosemite and the Grand Canyon.
I would go to the Tower of London and visit Glencoe (of course) I would go to Marrakesh and my list goes on and on.
But at the moment these are just dreams and they may stay dreams but I remain postive that I can make some of these things happen.
I am alive and well and therefore anything is possible, even at 54!

Jealousy is a curse

But I have to say I am VERY jealous of a friend who is planning a trip to England and Scotland next year. I also wish that I could go but that is very unlikely now that hubby is not well and about to lose his job.
So I have to be content to listen to my friend tell me about her plans and trip details and seem extremely excited for her!
It s going to be hard, and I AM very happy for her but I would till love to make that trip at some stage myself.
I'll just keep hoping.

Footy's big weekend

Well life has come to a standstill in bonny old Newcastle in the glorious state of New South Wales as it is footy final day. The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, the liquor shops are doing a roaring trade as well as the frozen meat pie section of our local supermarket.
I, myself, will not be taking part in this local ritual as I am not  footy fan. I will be spending this afternoon with family partaking in a birthday party - somewhat slightly more of a cultural affair.
To those who enjoy watching some pigskin being kicked around a large field by burly men who wish each other a swift descent into hell - I wish you fun.

You learn to adjust

When life sends you lemons you make lemonade...right? Or do you just open the bin and throw them away?
Whatever you do each decision has consequences. Sometimes we can be so unprepared for what the Universe throws our way. One day we can think the world is fine and spinning quietly in the right direction, and then the next day everything changes.
It can be something as simple as a fall, or just by walking outside and being in the wrong place at the wrong time and being involved in an accident, it can be that your house burns down, or you lose your job or your kids get sick or the dreaded "c" word or war.
We are all a walking time bomb of turmoil that sees us walking on a thin tight rope between "all good" and "chaos".
We all have burdens. We all have problems and issues that can have a huge dramatic impact not only on us but our whole family, our friends, our community.
Its a miracle any of us survive and live long enough to be happy.
Mostly we just adjust, a little here, a little there..sometimes huge adjustments but always changing.
That is one constant.
Nothing stays the same.

A new camera with a real need for a Scottish Highland

We have recently bought ourselves a new camera which just helps us take incredible pictures. Now all we need is a wonderfully picturesque Scottish Highland forest so that we can go crazy and take thousands of beautiful images..oh so wish we could make it happen.

Ah its Spring..

Spring in the Colonies is something to be warm the cockles!
Every morning the birds are chirping.
The leaves on the trees are unfurling in iridescent greens..
The sun is still bearably warm and toasty.
All is good with the world.
The flies and mozzies have not started their destruction of the serenity of both our days and nights
and living in Newcastle NSW allows me to drive past a sparkling ocean and see the migration of the whales on my very doorstep.
What more could I want right now?

The wind brings out the crazy people..

Have you ever noticed how the wind seems to bring out the crazy people in the township?
If its not the full moon then its that windy day that seems to blow idiocracy into people's behaviour and they start doing silly things.They get narky in the supermarket car park and drive around and around and get in people's way. They buy stuff and then return it holding up lines of people who JUST WANT TO GET OUT OF THE SHOP.
They make rude signs from their cars when they cut you off on the roadway.
They cant seem to form complete sentences when they talk to you and have a vague look in their eyes like their brains have been sucked up into a gigantic vortex...
Hmm yes..avoid going outdoors on windy days.
Today is a wind day in the colony.

Is it finally getting warmer?

Can I start to believe that it is finally getting warmer?
It seems to me that this winter lasted much longer than three months.
Its been cold and bitter in this part of the colony.
I am so glad to see the sunshine and feel the warmth.
As I write I hear the cockatoos and magpies outside, the day is clear and the flies are returning.
I am very blessed at having the strength to get through each day and even though I stress at little hiccups along the way I have the support of my wonderful husband to get me through and to slap me back to my senses.
I know of a person who looks at this very same day from his hospital bed and knows that for him there are not too many left to enjoy as he has an inoperable brain tumor.
This thought brings me back to a sense of perspective that, even though I may whinge and complain and carry on about trivial things my issues are nothing compared to what this person is going through.
I dont know how I would cope with such a predicament.
So today I am grateful and looking forward to what the day brings and will take time to say "its good to be alive".

You can live so close to a place...

Its strange that we often dont know whats in our own backyard.
Hubby and I went for a drive yesterday in our little corner of the colony and discovered a beautiful little wetland area only ten minutes from our home. We knew the park was there but had never ventured down the pathway to explore it.
What a joy that we did.

Originally an old brickworks which closed in 1977 it was a smelly dirty site for over 85 years which was recently rejuvenated into a peaceful and beautiful wetlands.

The site was renovated in 2007 and has walkways, BBQ areas and play areas for children where once so many men worked and created bricks for NSW building projects. What a great use of this site. It pays to discover what is so close to home.

shhh..quiet its trials time!

It has begun.
Trials.
The time of woe and angst for all Year 12 students.
I remember, a long time ago, in the dark ages when we used slates and chalk at school (smirk) I did the Higher School Certificate too.
Somehow it was not such a big deal -we just did it.
There was no fanfare, no needing copious amounts of support and incentives.
We were not allowed to go into a melt down nor did we cram till 3am.
The best thing was that we knew that the end was nigh - no more school with the class full of idiots that you had been forced to spend the best years of your life having to endure their infantile stupidity.
Well that was my case anyway.
I had been stuck with a class full of girls who spent their lunch breaks talking about the techniques of applying lip gloss and who they were intending to get on to during the up coming weekend while the "weird ones" of which I was a member tried not to mention weekends at all.
My daughter crammed last night with the light in her room still on at 2.30am.
She left today stressed and anxious while I kissed her on the forehead and told her to do her best.
For me ...these next few weeks will signal the last weeks of me having any children at school.
I hope she does well.

The sun is finally shining on the colonies..

It has been a record breaking week without rain in my little part of the colonies. The Lord and I have been able to venture outside and enjoy the warmth of the sunshine on our skins even though there is still a bite in the air in the early afternoons.
Somehow the sunshine makes things look and feel brighter and more achievable and this winter for us has brought life changes and difficulties we so are glad that this winter is almost over.
Also as I do some tour guiding in the city the rain has been horrid for my business and for local businesses that depend on tourism coming to the area as there have been weeks on end where we have not been able to go out due to the weather and tourists and visitors have stayed away.
So now as we slide into the back end of the year I am hoping that things stay warm and clear.
The Lord has been taking it easy and allowing some healing to occur within his sore and battered shoulder and is thanking the Gods for drugs that keep the pain reduced.
He is also getting used to the idea that at least for now he will be accepting the role as a house husband and true Lord of the Manor until his shoulder issues resolve.
So life is moving along slowly but surely.

Another fine Scotsman leaves his mark on the Colony.

Well it seems that there is a huge connection with this part of the world and many great Scottish people.
William Arnott (1827-1901), biscuit manufacturer, was born on 6 December 1827 at Pathhead near Kirkcaldy, Fife, Scotland. He was apprenticed to a baker and confectioner and, with his younger brother David, followed his family to Australia. He prospered until the two great floods of the Hunter River in 1857 brought disaster. The new building he had put up in 1856 was flooded and he had hardly recovered when he was flooded out again in 1861. In 1862 he was forced to compound with his creditors and in 1864 there were more floods. In February 1865 one of his creditors demanded full payment and in April his wife Monica, née Sinclair, died; he had met her on the voyage to Sydney and they were married in 1850.
Arnott moved to Newcastle in 1865. By September he was established in Hunter Street, Newcastle, and quickly built up a successful business, helped by his second wife, Margaret Maclean, née Fleming, whom he married at Morpeth in October. The move to Newcastle was made possible by loans from friends but he repaid all his debts within twelve months. In the next few years the name of Arnott became famous for bread and cakes but especially for sweet and plain biscuits and ships' biscuits, in which there was a big trade with the growing number of ships in port. Thank you Mr Arnott for your great biscuits - you used to give your broken ones away to the poor in Newcastle.

Here is a picture of Mr. William Arnott

You can see the tip of Mr Arnott's headstone here- this is all that is left of this fine man's burial site.

Let the sun shine..let the sun shine in!

We ARE living in the colonies, but we may as well be in the hills of Scotland as its been cold, wet and dark for weeks now.
As much as I hate the summer, I am looking forward to a bit of warmth.
This afternoon, despite the rain and cold, I went for a historic walk around an old local suburb called Mayfield here in Newcastle.

The suburb used to be known as Newcastle's "TOORAK" which is a well to do suburb in Melbourne. So it was well known to be a placed for the rich and industrious of Newcastle. As the city itself grew, so did the surrounding coal mines and the "Hill" area where all the rich people lived was always dirty with coal dust coming in the windows and doors. So the well heeled wanted to move out to an area close by with good views and space.

And so began the wealth of the Mayfield area with families that started huge businesses, like soap and candle making, Arnott's the biscuit maker and the Winn family that had stores in Newcastle amongst those to make the move.

"Bella Vista", shown above, is now a function centre but belonged to the manager of the BHP which was situated just across the way not far from the best dressed people in town. When the BHP opened its doors and started functioning it dirtied up the whole neighborhood and again these families moved on even further out of town, many to a place called Toronto by the lake.
It was a wonderful afternoon looking at all the places that are now worth millions each, places little Ladies like myself can only drool over.

and so the changes continue...

Well one thing that you can always bet on is that nothing stays the same forever.
And our little princess just announced that she has exactly 39 days left of High School before the best days of her life ( which she wont realize until she is much older ) are over...
and so will begin the battle that is the Higher School Certificate and then she will be unleashed onto the greater world - into a world she is very unprepared for (thanks to her over protective Ladyship) where she will undoubtedly learn the lessons of life on her own skin all the while surviving on two minute noodles and cereal in her first year at University.
The Lord of the Manor says that it is best that she learns to stand on her own two feet and that as money does not grow on trees around our neck of the woods she will have to learn to fend for herself. I do wish that I could make life less of a struggle and that I could keep on protecting her.
I wish to give her what I didnt have.
I wish that I had been protected by my parents - they thought that protection meant control and by controlling my activities that they were protecting me. As long as they could control the environment that I found myself in it would be easy.
But it wasnt.
It made my journey through life painful.
As parents we need to let our children explore their environment but allow them to have a soft place to fall, a place where love will always be available for free, not just received as long as they do their parent's bidding.
So, I will also learn the lesson of letting go and hoping to all things in heaven that my baby has more joy than grief, more success than failure and more love than pain.
And I promise to catch her if she falls.

The Roller Coaster Ride Continues...

Some times we have moments in life where we need to just clip on the seat belt and hold on for dear life as the ride we have chosen to be on speeds up and gets a bit out of control.
And so, we seem to have chosen the craziest ride in the amusement park that is our life in the colonies!
As I breathe in I see our life having changed so much over the last two weeks now that hubby has been booted out of work into retirement - at least for now.
His health is no better but there is a weight off his shoulders as the decision to stop work was made for him rather than him having had to have made it if you know what I mean. Now he can rest which is what was terribly needed and look at what he can do to resolve his shoulder injury.
We have to learn to adjust to living on a very reduced wage.
That safety net of a constant income is, for now, gone.
And as much as I do understand that all will be well, I dont like the feeling of insecurity.
This included picture is of our liquid amber that is in our front yard - it refuses to drop its leaves even after every other tree in the neighbourhood is standing naked and bear for weeks. It's stubborn, just like everyone else in our family!!

Did I say up shit creek?

Last week we were up shit creek without a paddle and this week we just lost our canoe!
The Lord has just lost his job due to a medical injury that has occurred as a result of 26 years of hard continuous work.
It was decided without consultation to retire him.
Nice!
It looks like we need to dig up the Manor flower gardens and start planting potatoes and pumpkin to see us through!
I will have to let the staff go - oh goodness how will I manage!
But on a serious side, it is not a good time in the Daniel household.
Compensation or any payouts are now a dream of the past - even if you get cut in half the O'Farrell government sees fit that one half of you can still crawl to some sort of work, and thats where you will die -even though the Lord is not good now, we hope that with rest he might be able to get himself sorted and be able to do something in the future, although at present, his specialist has deemed that he will never return to full time work again.
I pity those poor bastards that have lost a limb or are in constant pain and now due to changes in policy they face being left to suffer with no help from anyone.
Workers Compensation?
A joke!

I have dreams..

I do.
I dream that my kids are always safe and sound. That they find love and happiness in their lives and that the path ahead for them is easy and care free.
Have I spoilt them?
Yes I have although I have had different results in doing so - but I experienced my mother's love in a very detached and awkward way. She had had a hard life herself and really didnt want the complications of children but there was no pill back then. So she managed to have two.
So I have spoilt both of my girls. Showered them with protection with the hope that they will remember that I care.
Thats the memory I want them to have of me - that I loved them.
I dream for my husband to be happy with his life. To be pain free which is difficult for him right now as every day he suffers from a shoulder injury that makes him have sleepless nights and can make him sad and sometimes cranky.
I wish it would stop and that he would get better and that every day could be fulfilling and enjoyable.
I have dreams for myself too but often they dont matter as much cause what matters is that my family is happy, healthy and safe.

You just cant find good help when you need them?

Help..
The Manor is growing little piles of life's dross in every corner and I am being swamped by "stuff". Today I take a look around and believe that the whole idea of cleaning up is impossible!
A real Lord and Lady would not have this worry - our day would be interrupted at odd moments by the hired help magically working around us with several cleaning implements and keeping things in order for us.
But I dont have hired help.
I just have piles of mess.
Where do I begin?
PS. The picture here is not my house - but it could easily be!!!!!!
If any of the Lords and Ladies have some hired help that they can give us a lend of - then let me know.
I will only borrow them for as long as it takes me to clean up - I should be done in about a month.

Its the Long Weekend!

Well now the Queen's Jubilee is over and nothing left for it but to have a good old long weekend in the colonies!!
I must say I loved the concert that was telecast - it bought back a lot of memories with people like Cliff Richard who I once saw in concert here in Newcastle when I was a mere babe in nappies ( almost ). Then there was Annie Lennox and Grace Jones - Grace what can I say! A 60 year old lady who can hoola hoop and sing and has legs like a trojan soldier gets my vote!
Lord Elton is looking a bit elderly too.
Lets face it we are all growing older.
I didnt like the fact that Rolf Harris got all on stage to obviously fill a gap before Steve Wonder came on and then got rudely interrupted half way through "Two little boys"..if you call the guy up to fix your problem at least give him the courtesy of finishing..
Oh well..It was a jolly good show.
I hope you too have a good one!

Remembering my childhood ..

I have sketchy details about my early childhood.
Not an exceptionally good time for this Lady.
A hard time.
And I must have blotted out a fair bit of it as I only remember random moments.
But tonight I remembered some of the tv shows that were aired while I was very young.
I loved watching tv as it took me far away from where I really was.
I loved "The Beatles" which an animated show for children and each episode also featured a song or two. I used to watch that every Saturday morning.
I also loved "Lost in Space" and "The Monkeys".
I also watched "The Samurai"( another children's show very popular in Australia - it became a cult legend )
Then came "I Dream of Jeannie" and "Bewitched".
Also the "Adams Family" and the "Beverly Hillbillies" and "Green Acres" and "Mac Hales Navy" and "Gilligan's Island"...
Have I opened up the memory vaults for anyone else??

Are we in the Colonies or what?

Yeah, yeah..I know its Autumn but really, we ARE in the colonies and its usually much warmer that this!
Last night was positively arctic!
The wind was howling and the temperature dropped to beyond cold!
The only thing for it was to sit in front of the heater and keep warm and then head off to a toasty warm bed  and dream beautiful dreams of walking through the glens and forests of Glencoe.

This morning at least the sun is out and is trying to defrost the earth in our neck of the woods but the wind is still keeping the temperatures low.
This is not helping the Lord's shoulder pain - ever since he had an injury at work he has been finding it hard to continue working without having to take regular breaks or holidays to get him through his most painful periods.
These last few weeks have been particularly difficult and the cold weather and very early starts have not helped.
This has become a big issue for him and he is slowly realizing that he just cannot continue in the same capacity as before.
So its off to see doctors and specialists yet again this week to see what can be done.
Wishing you all a lovely weekend.

The little Princess has turned Legal!

Well the wheel of life turns so quickly and often as the days and months fly past we dont even notice until we see our children walk past one day and think "who is that person and when did they get so grown up?"
And so I found myself celebrating my baby girl's 18th birthday this weekend.
When the bloody hell did that happen?
She is the last little princess I have and she is planning to leave the nest next year to head to University in the big city leaving the colonial backwater of Newcastle far behind.
I fear that she is unprepared for the harshness of city life and I do not want to think about it right now.
The festivities of the coming of age were a quiet affair as she prefers to save her pennies for her end of school year "schoolies" yet another rite of passage that frightens the bejezzels out of me.
Where is that little girl whose every centimeter of skin would be kissed on a daily basis when she was only a wee bub!
She is now all grown up and there is nothing I can do about it.

Its so cool being a LORD!

MILORD in midflight above the glorious Hunter Valley NSW..

Living the life of a Lord

For a brief moment in time the Lord and Lady of the Manor felt quite affluent this week with a few nights out at local restaurants including Spanish Tapas and German homestyle cooking ending in a weekend with the Lord taking a flight in a Albatross jet and going to see RIVERDANCE as they finally finish their world tour.
All of this amazingness makes one quite tired!
I will need a few days at home in front of the tele to bring me back to earth but first I am heading to Melbourne for a few days to do some research and study.
Wow life has been hard to bear ( NOT!!!)
How do the rich and well heeled do this?

ANZAC DAY

We have a very special day coming up in the colonies on April 25th.
Its ANZAC day - a day when we pay our respects to those that have given their lives in the service of defending their country. We should spend time on this day to remember all of those that have fought in any war - there is never a winner in war. In any conflict there are always mothers that lose sons and husbands, children who lose fathers and parents who have to bury their children.
My parents survived WW2. It left scars on them which they somewhat passed on to me by providing an environment which was often fractured, harsh and at times insecure - but they did their best and I survived even though at times I wonder how...and so I know that conflict leaves its mark not only on those that are on the front line but it spreads like a virus to infect everyone that it somes into contact with.
Lest we forget.

Spending time with the Loved Ones

Easter has come and gone and now its back to the business end of the year..it seems to be hoilday mode for the first few months of each year as we get through Christmas and New Year and then Australia has school holidays all January so everyone is just "busy" or "away". Nothing gets achieved in January. Then everyone gears up for school going back and no one has any money and thenbefore we know it its Easter and Easter holidays.
But...in the Daniel Manor I have the Lord at home on holidays and also the Princess who is on school break. So this prolonged hiatus will last for a little longer.
We had huge plans to do lots of gardening and cleaning but as tends to happen when one is on holidays...nothing is getting done.
Oh well..spending time with my family is by far the best so this is what I am enjoying right now.

Easter Happiness is home and family

I really am no longer interested with the basis of Easter holidays and the religious background to this event. I am quite respectful of people's beliefs and I think that the views I heard this morning on a televison program where someone said that if nothing else we should allow Easter to be a catalyst for self renewel and intraspection is enough for me. I spent my early years in church and following the demands of my parent's religion and now no longer wish to do that anymore.
The greatest joy is that I am at the Manor with my nearest and dearest ( accept for a daughter who is in Melbourne ) is the most important aspect of this season.
Getting older ( and wiser ) also allows me to understand that I now have less time to spend and enjoy rather than more time and therefore I want to make each moment precious.
I hope that one day soon I might be able to enjoy grandchildren and be able to shower love and gifts on them.
But for now being at home with the Manor hounds, one who is currently lying in a catatonic state on his back , legs in the air in total bliss on the couch snoring and the other reclining happily on his pillow in the corner of the room as well as my Lord and the Princess both on their laptops and computers just chilling, knowing that bellies are full and we will all sleep soundly in warm comfy beds tonight as well as enjoying some extra chocolate makes me very happy. My wish wish is for world peace of course and world peace needs to start with our own private little worlds.

Turning the lights off!

Anyone living in this great Colony for any given length of time will know just how bright it gets in Oz! The sun seems to be brighter and all colours are just so intense. Mother Nature has also been kind over the last few days and dried up most of the rain so its all sparkly and warm.
But our fair land has its share of local visitors who have come out of their shelters to enjoy the sunshine too...as can be seen by the creature in the bucket...

This character was plucked from the yard of my sister  in law in suburban Charlestown - Newcastle.
I am not sure what sort of snake it is...but I really dont want to know either. I think if I had stumbled across this beast I would have filled my lady's pantaloons!!!!
The snake has been disposed of carefully.
Lets also turn down the lights for an hour tonight as we "turn off" for EARTH HOUR  - - for most people around the world having no electricity is the norm.

Does this hair make me look fat??

Well it is now the day after the weekend of the WORLDS GREATEST SHAVE and I am now offically very near bald. Not quite as I would not let my husband shave me down to the bare skin - I have just left a very short covering - after all I am in the colonies and I am sure that I am reverting back to the old convict style of haircut whereby only the worst offending women would have thier heads shaven...so I have lost my status!!!!!

But I did manage to get to my goal which was $1000..if fact I have scored a little more. The total amount still to come I believe I have about $1300.SO this little Lady is well pleased. Now to find a good hat!

And its now so close!

Its this weekend - yes in just a few days I will be shaving my hair off for the Worlds Greatest Shave Fundrasier.
I know that it may not be becoming for a LADY to have a shaven head...but it is for a good cause.
If I go back into the early history of the colony I am reminded that only the wrost offending women had their heads shaven as punishment for the dasterdly deeds that they committed while here.
The Governors of the day decided to really make an example of the poor women who were forced to leave their families and incarcerated to serve out their sentences in the far off land of Australia. So heads wee shaven and sometimes a collar of metal with a chain was also worn around the neck by the poor sods that transgressed against the rules of the day.
Women upon arrival were usually placed in some sort of refractory for women where they had to work very hard and then if they were lucky might be sold off to a local lad who was granted some free hold land and needed a good wife to take care of the household. Joy!
So I will pay homage not only to those whose hair falls out due to cancer and treatment that is required for a cure but also to those lovely strumpets who graced our shores 200 years ago and were treated no better than cattle.

The Colonies are sinking!

It has not stopped raining since December. Usually in the stinking hot Colonies in summer it is... stinking hot! But this year we have had month after month of rain. Each day the news shows us another poor township succumbing to the flood waters that seems to be spreading their tentacles wider and wider. I feel for those going through it the first time and those that have just gotten back on their feet ot have it happen again - my own parents lost eveything in the great 1955 flood in our own region and I still hold on to some old family photos that are encased in the mud that covered everything during that awful event.
Mother nature can be a bitch as she reclaims her right to rule this planet. As much as we need the water we now have too much and many people are suffering from their huge losses and also losses to their businesses - our local toruism industry has taken a beating. I know this personally with having to cancel a number of my tours over the last few weeks due to the rains.What can you do.Just sit and wait it out.

I have not been idle!

What happens when a partnership finds it best to split and move on?
Its time to pack up all the crazy shit that has been stored for a very long time and haul arse out of there!
This is true in relationships and in business.
In business when you are in a partnership you may as well be married as you end up seeing more of your partner then you would your very own husband or wife.
So, this week I am packing the remnants of a two year parntership to move forward for the benefit of both of us.
The bottom line is people change.
Our wants, needs and desires change.
This is one thing that is guaranteed.
And so we changed too.
Life got in the way - many tragedies and life's little trials and tribulations.
Now I have to pack half an office full of junk into a very small house with no storage space.
Most of it sits in the hallway as I think of places where I can stack it.
Heaven help me -  the place looks disgusting.
I dont think I am going to be very successful and I need to buy another house to store all of this excess shite!
So I have not been idle.
I am very busy - this is no work for a Lady!!!!

Old Government House

This Lady spent an afternoon leisurely enjoying a glass of good white and a civilised BBQ in the lawns of OLD GOVERNMENT HOUSE at Parramatta SYDNEY last Saturday. Very swanky indeed.
This is one of the oldest homes left in Sydney- circa late 1790's and I am sure the walls would have many a story to tell about the good old days of the colonies when convicts were chained in leg irons and flogged to do the bidding of the Governor.
We took part in a ghost tour of the home after being served a most wonderful lunch and heard the stories of the souls that still seem to haunt this building -strangely still there even though many are buried overseas.

It was a totally wonderful way to spend a glorious afternoon out and I had a most brilliant time.
Of course I immediately felt at home on the property and could pciture myself strolling through the gardens back in the 1800s as a Lady would be want to do.
Ah for those halcyon days when someone else would do the washing and tend the garden!!

Its been a big week

This little Lady and her Lord had a big week in the Colonies.
A new automobile to replace the old horse and carriage has been the highlight.

I am very excited. It reminds me of my very first car that I bought all on my own over 30 years ago.
All I wanted to do was hoon around in it driving for hours around the roads of the city feeling such ultimate freedom in being able to get away from the family home and parents.
Now I am a lot older and wiser and will take very good care of this investment as it is to serve me in my business as well as private use.
I am also now fully fledged "going it alone" in my business - no longer in partnership with no one to hold my hand and make me feel safe and secure.
It was the LORD'S birthday party yesterday at his niece's property on the Central Coast - it was a most wonderful afternoon with too much food and very good company.
And today I have spent a fortune on the Princess for her school needs.
Seems like the money needs to be printed more quickly as we are using our supplies up too quickly!
But, life is very good at the moment.
Change is change but we always find ourselves having the ability to make choices.
Life would be much harder if we had NO CHOICE.

Going Bald for the Cause

I made a decision today - to do the World's Greatest Shave. I will be shaving my head in a months time and in the process hope to raise around $1000 for this cause. I did this for the very first time about four years ago and loved every minute of it.
I raised $1000 together with a friend - she also raised $1000.
It was very scary to have my hair saved - the first time I was almost bald.
But, it was totally refreshing not to have to think about what I would do with my hair for months afterwards.
I now have a friend who has been through breast cancer so  I have seen her personal struggle.We all have a friend or family member who has been through it.
I am shaving my head because I CHOOSE to not because I HAVE to.

In that I find great joy and for that reason, because I have a choice ...I do choose to step outside of my comfort zone and do it. Its my way of doing just a little so that my life is not just a "shallow self serving affair".

When life serves you lemons ..go make lemonade!

Being thrown lots of lemons lately. Lots. Life in the colonies has become challenging with my working conditions changing and readjustment needed. As I have been collaborating with a dear friend for the past few years on projects close to our hearts it makes the changes especially hard. Sometimes changes are required to save friendships. Thats what I am hoping for anyway because it would be really tough to lose a business and a friendship as well. Working two small businesses which were both starting off from scratch proved a bit much and to top that off both of us have had deaths in the family and illness all adding to the stress to succeed and to keep money coming in. But, better for each of us to work on one project and do it well rather than both of us sink into the mire of indecision and feel that we are both missing out on fullfilling our dreams.
So I will continue to support my (ex) business partner in all that she does but she now has free reign to lead the business in whatever direction she sees fit and she has done the same for me.
For that I am very grateful.
Now its all a bit scary to proceed " on my own", but I will give it my best shot.No one to hold my hand anymore.Wish me luck.

A Wet January!!

Well its been raining on and off all January with indespersed moments of humidity and heat.
Glorious colonial weather.
I am trying to imagine the first settlers surviving in weather like this in the conditions of 1800's Australia.
Women in full length petticoats, jackets and boots and men in dapper shirts and vests!
That would have been tragic - imagine the heat stroke!!!!!
There is many a tale of women catching their dresses in the flames of open hearths and going up like a Roman candle - there was no medical team to rush to their aid 200 years ago.
Fancy falling into a river dressed in petticoats and all the trimmings?
Thank the Lord for thongs ( flip flops ) t shirts and shorts for both men and women....oh and whoever invented the washing machine should get a Nobel prize.

Just when you get settled ...things change.

Sometimes it can be hard to accept change.Sometimes it is needed but we try to avoid it because it disrupts our schedule. This year has not started well - no, not from a health point of view...phew - all is well in the Manor on that level.
But in the way of persistant small niggling changes that seem to shift one's own axis for a while.
Instead of spinning off in one direction you are made to stop the wheel and then pick up enough momentum to spin the other way.
It seems that I cannot get into the flow of 2012 without the bloody wheel stopping again.
Good thing that I have the Good Lord Arek my beloved husband to keep me laughing and focusing forward...
oh and also the dream of laying prostrate in the glens of Glencoe listening to the wind rustling through the trees hopefully sometime soon..

This country is still rough around the edges...

This selected pic says it all about living in the colonies!Australia is a melting pot of the rest of the world.Naturally it is still tough and rugged - mother nature still has a handle on this place - she rules. Droughts at one end of the country and floods at the other end. The centre is scorched dry with a huge rock in it.
So many walks of life, so diverse, so much passion - you CAN do anything you want to , you can strive to be anything you want to be, even a Lord and Lady!
Being stuck on an island though makes us forget what is going on in the rest of the world. We are hidden away and isolated and often belittle what we have - but its only because the woes of there rest of the world are not in our face - we just see them on tv.
We have things in the bush that can kill you.
We have animals that fight back.
And with the amazing array of religions, customs and cultures that are settled and live side by side I think overall we are pretty tolerant.
So this is where I am right now, and I am grateful to be here.
Happy Australia Day.

Proudly a GREY ENTREPRENEUR..

oh so thats what I am..a "grey" entrepreneur according to "A Current Affair"...a new phenomenon in Australia? I dont think so..what else can we do - no one wants to employ anyone over 50 any more..we are thought of as has beens who know nothing.. isnt that the case? So we have to make our own work. Over 50 year olds cannot afford to retire anymore - they will have to work till they drop dead at it. Retiring at 65 is now a thing of the past! Take your vitamins all of you "oldies" and become grey entrepreneurs!!! Cause being on the the pension is f**cked.And if you are anything like me...being in my fifties sneaked up on me when I wasnt looking. I swear I was only 25 a few years ago? 

It feels like I never left?

I have been back to work for over a week now. Totally rested after a few precious days off with the rest of the clan at home and in Melbourne.
Now it is onward and upward as I fight off the desire to just hide in a corner and let the world leave me alone.
I am happy to be back "working" as I am a small business owner and profit depends on no one else but me.
If I do not work I do not make any money and the rent has to be paid!
I can either fail miserably by doing nothing or get into it for another year and try to come out the other end with some money in the bank.
I love the space my business partner and I have created ( we run a healing centre just outside of a major  suburban shopping centre ) and our space is calming, relaxing and ...well..... healing.
But today has added a shade of grey to the pallette of life as my partner's father passed away last night from a short illness - so she is taking a few days off to grieve and attend to the duties of a daughter.
I have taken the helm of the ship and will try to steer it beyond the rocks of doom for at least the next week and then life will go on..... as it does.

and that was the holiday...

Took a few days off to travel with my both daughters to Melbourne - a place that is a fantasy land of food and drink from all ethinic backgrounds.So, of course this lady indulged!
Japanese dumplings and okonomyaki ( omlette ), greek cream cakes, borek from Queen Victoria Markets ( a must have ) and much more.
I shopped much more than I needed to and spent too much money on "stuff " than one just cannot buy in the colony in New South Wales.
I did the Haunted Ghost Tour of Melbourne in the pouring rain but loved hearing the stories of the city's deep dark past.
Also took the free shuttle around the city and went to the Art Gallery ( a very cultured thing to do!)
But then it was all too soon time to head home and thats when things turned ugly!
You see this delicate little Lady suffers from vertigo, and one very turbulant journey home meant one very severe attack!
So I was not a pretty picture - vertigo for me as worse than labour pains, far worse..it is a suffering that I cannot bear until it is over. Any movement, light , sound everything irritates me as I try to battle with the pain in my head and the nausea that comes in waves.
Today as I sit here I can say that it is over but there was a while last night when I could have reached for a gun.

This building is one of the many gorgeous old buildings in the city centre.

This is on the front of the Gothic ANZ building - a must see!

Last days of freedom..

I have a few days left of "semi freedom" before the cycle work begins again next week.
I have moved our business to a bigger office this year hoping that maybe that will impress the Philistines and maybe, just maybe this year I will actually earn some money.
I have been busy scrubbing, unpacking, moving, painting..all highly strenuous activities for a Lady of the Manor.
So much so that my back is making angry noises telling me to stop what I am doing forth with!
I have had an enormous amount fo help of course, one cannot do these things on one's own, and my business partner and her husband have done much of the heavy work - so I say that we have both had much less of a holiday this year than most others.
The place is looking schmick though..
We are therapists - we provide gentle alternative healing therapies such as Reiki, Energy Healing, Hypnotherapy and Counselling and so it is the gentle, finer arts that we indulge in and seek distinguished types who would appreciate such interactions and find them beneficial to the balance of one's mind, body and soul to come and pay us a visit and leave behind their woes and a purse full of money and leave with a much more integrated disposition.
So I enjoy my final chances to sleep in a bit and in a few days I will even venture to Melbourne for a short break with my daughters.I look forward to it.