Friday 9th October 2009

It has been a rather strange and distorted week - playing golf on the wrong days of the week & having unseasonal weather, far too much socialising & not being able to get out in my gardens has left me unsettled & out of routine! Must be getting too old for all of this!

The long weekend went quickly enough with the Grand Final of the Football on Sunday Evening which resulted in Rod's Anne having a very happy night as she is a Melbourne Storm supporter.

Rod is a long time Bulldogs supporter & was not happy at not making the final. Today was Sam's birthday but she & Shane were at Diamond Beach for the weekend so we had to put celebrations on hold.

Phil and Lorraine arrived towards the end of the match so we had a catch up with them over a Lamb Roast Dinner. Jason is improving everyday. The surgeons were able to save his arm but it is a bit too early yet to know the full damage. At this stage he is still in intensive care with the Doctors looking at other damage to his shoulder area.

Monday 5th October we played golf with Warren Gray & Mary Bromwich and the weather held quite well while we were playing and the course was in surprisingly good condition after all the rain. We had an enjoyable day in spite of the cold weather. Phil & Lorraine caught the train to Sydney to have the day with Jason. Jason needed to have another operation to remove a blood clot fom his shoulder which caused some anxious moments. The Doctors were concerned about nerve damage - but little can be known at this early stage. Monday evening when Phil & Lorraine returned from Sydney we went to Arie's Thai Restaurant at Wyoming for dinner with our friends Mark & Anne Stimpson & had a pleasant evening there. The rain had returned by then and some high winds.

Tuesday 6th October I was not feeling the best and decided not to play golf in the bad weather. I did get to plant a few new roses that I had purchased for my garden at home. It is a good time to plant in the rain. I am not a wet weather golfer & was happy to have a catch up at home before going over to the club after lunch to collect the results slip for the golfer's blog. Anne Stimpson had donated some ceramic garden pots to the club so I had to decide where they should be placed. I picked Phil & Lorraine up at the railway that evening as it was raining again and we had a quiet dinner at home to recover from the previous day. Jason had shown signs of improvement & was up sitting in a chair today.

Wednesday 7th October I spent the early part of the morning planting some Pony Tail Palms in the donated pots and placed them at the front entrance to the club. After trimming and spraying the roses at the putting green I hurried home to change for a date with Anne & Joel. Today was Anne's Birthday so we went to lunch at a pleasant little coffee shop at East Gosford.

It was lovely having a catch up with them & getting some cuddles of Joel. It was still raining when Phil & Lorraine got home from Sydney so we decided to go to the RSL Club for dinner and a bit of relaxation. Jason was showing more signs of improving but at this stage still being watched over in Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at RPA.

Thursday 8th October Phil & Lorraine decided to go back to Graham & Anne's for a few days as the train travel was getting a little harrowing (as it does). The weather was still not nice so I did not play golf today either electing instead to go shopping for a replacement pot for the one that got destroyed last month in one of the wild storms. I did manage to do something that was not unusual for me. Go our shopping for a ceramic pot and come home with a TV Lounge!!!!!

The ceramic replacement pot that I had previously selected but had not got around to buying was, of course, gone when I went to buy it so I had to go further afield in search of another choice. During that process I wandered through the Tuggerah shopping factory outlets and came across a TV lounge that took my fancy - on SALE of course! I did the same thing when I came home with my little red hyundai. I never regretted that purchase & I hope the lounge will be the same. Our old lounge is comfortable but too low to the floor & is hard to get out of. That is my justification! Sam & Shane came over for dinner so we had a belated birthday celebration for Sam.

Friday 9th October I got up early and repotted the poor old plant that had been waiting for it's new pot. I also planted a peace lily in a small pot that had been donated to the golf club. By the time that was delivered & put in place at the club, I picked up yesterday's results slip so I could update the golfer's blog & then it was back to Tuggerah to cement the deal on the purchase of the lounge which can't be delivered until Christmas. That will be my Christmas present to myself.

The garden competition win last week included $100 voucher from Rural Traders at Ourimbah so I called in there and picked up a "you beaut" tree lopper which will be useful for F-Troop work.

It has been such a miserable day that I did not do too much this afternoon & read a bit of my new book. I have just spoken with Phil & have found out that Jason was moved back to the General Ward at RPA this afternoon so it is all sounding much more positive. No doubt there will be a lot of physio and rehabilitation before the full permanent damage (if any) can be assessed.

I will be happy to see this cold & wet weather move on to summer. I was speaking with our Greenkeeper at the club today & he said the long term forecast says no more rain after this until December so I should be grateful for every drop we are getting now.