Blog for Wednesday 19th August 2026

    I'm supposed to respect my elders, but it’s getting harder for me to find one now!

 Another new day had arrived in the small hours of today– how wonderful!

I was soon up and out of bed and heading towards my beloved study to have my Quiet Time, upload my blog and check my emails.

This morning, I felt ever so swishy with my two computer screens to play with. Initially I knew not how to use the second screen really, but after several serious tongue waggles and wiggles I got it!  Things take me a little longer to “get” in the IT world compared to our kids and grandchildren! But … like the tortoise I do get there in the end!

My laptop and second screen

I left Ken in bed when I left to have coffee with my new friends - the ex-South African ladies in the Food Court at Erina Fair.

I am so pleased with myself as I really feel like one of the Coasties (they being those who live here on the Central Coast) now and have not got lost for a while! I am even getting around in Erina Fair like I was born here!

There were only six of us there for coffee today as the others were away for a variety of reasons, but it is always fun to get together and have a good natter.

From coffee, (where I bought Ken an apple muffin) I went to Just Cuts to get my hair tidied and trimmed. I always feel nice after a visit to the hairdresser – whether I look better or not is not that important!

Once home I gave Ken his apple muffin which he really enjoyed, and then I began to sort out the containers with my embroidery stuff and the UFO’s in them. I still need to get Ken to help me carry them outside as they are too heavy for me to carry on my own.

I worked outside and packed all the empty containers together and when we drop off Paddy’s gifts I will give them to Matt’ to take to the farm when he goes up next. I have only kept two of the empty containers for Ken to use for his tools and fishing stuff until we put the little shed together. I need Ken to help me do that as I am unable to hold the sheets and screw them together on my own, hey, but I am game to try!

I felt positively angelic not doing my cross stitching today and attacking the containers instead. I am getting rather used to doing what I want to do and not what I need to do, so best I bring a little more law and order into my life again!

Tonight we will have the Mexican mince dish that I made for us last night but that we did not end up eating as we had rather a lot of cheese and biscuits, pate, salami, mixed nuts and so on! I will serve it with spinach wraps. chilli sauce, sour cream, sliced avo’ and chopped tomatoes and onion, lettuce and shredded cheese. And it is already all done! Wonderful!

Ken took out bins out for collection tomorrow, but we seldom have much rubbish. I am amazed at how little we waste. I think it is being able to buy small amounts and only what we need instead of having to buy for a week or ten days and sometimes for much longer periods and not using it all in that time. It is marvelous having the shops around the corner here! When we were still on the farm, I never knew if or when we were having visitors as my good man loved inviting whomsoever and for whenever, but neglecting to inform me, as he really did not realize that the shops were not around the corner. In fact, the nearest being almost 60kms away! I am only now really getting used to the shops being so close.

Tonight, I think I will watch another episode of “The Block” as I so enjoy watching what these five couples create specific rooms in the homes they are building. At the moment they are creating the main bedroom, en suite and I think, another bathroom too – all in a week! The pressure is beginning to get to them all, as apart from having to work hard, in a limited time, one has to remember that this is a competition so no one is really your friend!

Talking about pressure, shame I put pressure on my friend Hester to produce more of her book for me to read! What a wicked old lady I am!

What lesson did I learn today? I cannot always choose to do, what I want to do! Rats!

What am I grateful for today? Meeting up with my new ex-South African friends for coffee.

My saying for today is …