Good Things Friday

Easter Weekend with my Family

So many good things last weekend. When we’re down at my parents a major portion of our time is spent thinking about what to eat, shopping for food to eat, preparing food to eat and eating. Everyone pitches in in some capacity, whether with the shopping, the cooking or the cleaning up. Meals stretch for a while with lots of chatting while we’re eating. Aside from that, everyone is comfortable wandering off to do their own thing, but we also spend a lot of time sitting, either outside under the grapevine or in the living room, just chatting. Good times! There were also several memorable highlights.

On Saturday, G, S and I drove across to Torquay to do the Parkrun. I was in two minds regarding the earlyish morning wake-up—we were leaving at 7 am, but I woke up at about 6:40 without an alarm and decided to get ready quickly and go. I didn’t regret it. On the drive over, we went through a patch of heavy fog, then broke out to drive through fields covered in a light blanket of mist, tinged golden by the rising sun. Above us, the high clouds glowed pinkly against a blue sky. I’m so glad I decided to go … I would have missed this otherwise.

We enjoyed the sunrise on our very short warmup before Parkrun started, and then I carefully increased my speed over the course of the Parkrun to test my foot. It was … fine. Still a little bit sore, but running on it didn’t seem to cause any more damage.

My sister went home for the night on Friday and left her four-year-old for my mum to look after. Once home from my run on Saturday, I took my niece to the beach. Boy, did this bring back memories of the beach with kids, but it was so much easier having one four-year-old without also wrangling a two-year-old and a baby. We had a good time. I showed her how to make dribble castles, and then, with the tide rapidly rising, she worked tirelessly digging a dam in front of it to protect it from the incoming waves. It was a losing battle, of course, but once the inundation was complete, she soon found another little game to amuse herself. By the time we got home, my sister and her husband had arrived back, and I handed her off for the de-sanding procedure.

Mid-afternoon, my second brother-in-law arrived in time for his special 50th birthday dinner. My sister and her kids did most of the cooking for this with rib-eye roast, roast pumpkin with feta, pistachios and salsa verde, potato dauphinoise and peas. For dessert, we had a hot cross bun bread and butter pudding, which was worth risking a reaction to have. We also had gluten-free chocolate mud cake because my brother-in-law has coeliac. Then my niece—not the four-year-old but the 19-year-old—made espresso martinis for whoever wanted them. I decided not to risk having coffee on top of my red wine as I didn’t want to trigger my vertigo. There may have been some silly behaviour after that.

In other news, my foot survived my 26 km long run on Sunday, a bit sore, but nothing like it was the Wednesday prior. I went up on the rail trail, which apart from the hills, is always a treat. Heading back down towards Swan Bay, I saw what I think was a little flock of Red-Browed Finches. They flew away as I approached, and I just got a glimpse of their red tails as they flew off.

A Job!

Our daughter finished her degree(s) (Bachelor of Commerce/Actuarial Science) in November last year and has been applying for graduate positions. She landed an entry-level Data Analyst role at an underwriting company in the city and starts this Monday. We are going out as a family tonight to celebrate.

The Art is on the Wall

I got a text from the framers before we went away that our art was ready to pick up. G picked it up yesterday and hung it this morning.

Bonus Good Things

• My mum had picked up six dozen hot cross buns from Babka, which would have cost a pretty penny. So, so good. Lots of fruit, no peel but a subtle orange flavour, sticky glaze on the top, rustic style. Mum bought two dozen out of the freezer each day (Friday-Sunday) to eat. The question was, who would get the one extra bun each day … although my nephew solved that when he arrived down on Friday afternoon.
• Despite some very heavy rain on Monday and Tuesday, the rain stopped when I got out of the car at my daughter’s place to go to running group, and we completed the session without being rained on.
• I picked a date for a get-together with my school friends, messaged the invites, and they can all come. School friend get-together is a go!
• We finished watching Bodies which I really enjoyed. The time loop paradox (with associated sexual ick factor) reminded me of Dark. We’ve started watching The Gentlemen, and I’m loving it. Hilarious in a dark way.
• My local library. I’ve got a pile of books to return and some reserves to pick up. I usually reserve everything I want to borrow so I can just go in and pick it up. They have also just set up a library of things at one of the branches. They have a sewing machine to lend, so if I do decide to follow through on attempting to brush up my sewing skills, I’ll be able to borrow instead of buy.
• I’ve really been enjoying Pip’s latest series of posts, recounting her days.

That’s all from me. How’s your week been? Have you ever borrowed from a library of things? If you use the library, do you reserve books or browse the shelves?