Another couple of weeks have gone and I’m not sure what I have been up to. Yesterday I went out on the bike for a jaunt and stopped off at Jasper Coffee to have a double shot Latte which was very good indeed and gave me the energy I needed to get back home.

The route I took yesterday was not really difficult but there were a few hills that got the heart rate up there and I could have passed by the café but I think this will be part of the Sunday routine from now on. The coffee was really good and I managed to sneak in a couple of biscuits but maybe next week I’ll opt for one of the delicious looking Danish Pastry’s that were on offer.

Last week it just rained and rained and so the garden is happy and I got a few plants to put in which I will do tomorrow. I cut the grass yesterday and that was quite the challenge, with all that rain the catcher was filling up really quickly and it was so heavy and I nearly filled the large rubbish bin so I have left the lid open to let the moisture escape and lighten the load. Oh I did buy a new electric whipper snipper which I must admit is way better than it’s petrol rival that I have, no skint knuckles or damaged fingers getting this to fire up…..all you need to do is press a button and it is quiet.

Been doing a bit more planning for next year, a bit more research on where to go and I shortened my trip by one week, I think one month is sufficient.

The school holidays begin this weekend, although I might still get the odd hire driving job over the break and I am hoping to get started on a few jobs around the house. I need to finish the insulation on the eaves of the house and I am still wanting to insulate the garage wall as it gets blasted by the rising sun. I’ve tested the air-conditioning in the “Rumpus Room” which is just marvellous. Because it is already so much cooler than upstairs it does not have to work that hard to stay cool and because it is more open it just feels so much better. I’m not sure if I mentioned before but I am going to knock out an internal wall between one of the bedrooms and living room to make it more open plan. I don’t need three bedrooms. My builder is coming in the morning to give me some advice and so if all goes well I’ll get started next week hopefully, although the electrician can’t get here until a few weeks later and so I am hoping I can work around this small detail.

Lunch date with friends today, it’s been a year since we have all managed to be together. We live scattered to the four winds and so each time we meet one of us chooses the location, today Wayne chose a small restaurant in Pimpama which for me is a quite the hike but it’s always worth it.

My Tandoori chicken dish was delicious, only complaint was that the humidity was way too high but unfortunately we have no control over that.

I haven’t been to this part of the coast in ages and I cannot believe just how built up it has become, each time I venture down here it only reinforces my thoughts on this place.. I hate it. It’s so busy, so glad I left it 20 years ago.

Peter, the guy on the right gave up his day job to pursue an acting career which so far has worked out well for him. He has appeared in a few local dramas and bit parts in major films and has recently returned from his native Cambodia after filming and directing an action movie called Bullet Storm and he knows that when he goes to the Oscars he needs to bring the entourage 🤗

I did a bike ride on Saturday morning, didn’t go too far. The heat and humidity this week has been dreadful and as we speak there is a massive thunderstorm which is shaking the house and I’m hoping that it will clear the air and reduce the temperature.

Oh and I bought a new VPN, NordVPN which seems to be working a lot better than Surfshark which I have had for two years or so. NordVPN runs well on my phone as well as the computer, it’s a bit more expensive but I think after using it for a day I’m glad I got this instead of Surfshark. Highly recommend it if you want to be more secure online.

Another month gone and closer to my travels. Only 25 working days till the holidays and then I can get on with doing a few things around the house. My travels however are a few weeks later.

The broo has left me alone in the meantime because I’m doing steady work and I’ll be supported through the holidays, although I’m trying to find work for the school holidays to boost the travel fund.

Great book by the way, began the second in the series today and highly recommend it.

I’ve had a lazy week, I’ve worked around the garden, read my books and drove the bus. At times the bus is a chore and I really wish I didn’t have to do it but as I’ve said before”It is a means to an end”

The weekend is almost gone. Saturday I went for a walk and listened to a podcast and then came back and spent some time researching Indonesia, I booked another hotel but I don’t want to do anymore of that because I really want to travel on more of a whim during this trip but sometimes I need the certainty.

Today I got on the bike but didn’t manage to complete the route I wanted to do, I’d say that I fell short by about 10km or so but 20km in the headwind got stronger and my energy was being sapped very quickly and so I headed home.

After twenty years or so I finally met up with Marie and her husband Dave, well I’ve never met Dave before, but it’s been over twenty years since Marie and I last met in Greenock.

I remember the night vividly even although I was very drunk. We had gone to a nightclub with friends and late in the evening I needed some fresh air and so I asked the bouncer if it was OK to step outside for ten minutes and he said “Sure”….. Then he wouldn’t let me back in and so I had to stay outside in the rain for quite some time until Marie came looking for me, she had no idea where I had gone.

And so yesterday Dave and Marie were at Brisbane Airport on there way back to Auckland after being on a cruise to PNG and I was lucky to catch up with them there. It didn’t feel as if twenty years had passed, we hugged and it felt as if I only saw her yesterday.

I’m hoping that I can go and visit them in September next year.

We sat for hours and hours and the time just flew by, great afternoon.

Sunday

This morning I was knackered, so I had a lazy morning and then went out on the bike for an hour…. I would have loved to go for a long run but I just didn’t have the energy so I’ll try to get out during the week.

Not much happened after this, although I did retire to the hammock for an hour or so which was magic. I need another lazy day but I’ll be up at crack of dawn in the morn to go to work.

I managed to find a new route this morning and even travelled some new territory, it was good to go exploring for a change.

I left about 8am, I’d been up for a while but wanted to let breakfast settle. I took two bottles of water today, it’s going to be a long ride. Once committed you have no options.

It wasn’t too hot and even throughout it didn’t seem too hot although the sweat was running off me. I went through an area called Ripley, a densely built up area with tiny houses on some streets and then utter monstrositys tucked in using every inch of their land. Horrible place to live, and it’s not cheap.

Managed just over 30km today and felt OK when I got back, not too many hills this time. Mind you there were a few difficult sections.

At this time of the year the Jacaranda are out in full bloom and all over the city there are fine beautiful examples. When the petals fall they carpet the ground with stunning colour.

I took this video the other day along Brisbane Terrace when coming back with the bus, hence the reason for the bumpy playback and noise.

Take the liver of the sheep,
Take the heart too,
And the stomach and lungs,
It’ll no miss them the noo.

Grab your pot,
And stick in the lot,
Liver, heart and the lungs to stew,
Simmer for twa hours or till done,
Remove from the pot sit it on its bum.

Now it’s time to chop and mix,
Grab all the bits and finely dice,
Liver, heart and lungs suffice,
Onion oats and suet, in a bowl we mix,
Seasoned whispers—salt, nutmeg, pepper fix.

In a pot so deep, our journey starts,
Gather ’round with hungry hearts,
A humble meal from Scotland’s pride,
Where artistry and texture coincide.
In that pot let the water boil,
Now grab all ingredients and don’t recoil,
Add the mixture, stir with glee,
The Haggis is about to be set free.

Now grab yer stomach, no yours but the sheeps,
And with meat and spice bring together to complete,
Seal it up with needle and thread,
You’re nearly there no need to dread,
Make it tight but then prick the skin,
You don’t want that wee haggis explodin”
Fill it up, but leave some space
Bring it back to life in the waters warm embrace.

When the time is right and the colour is fine,
Remove the Haggis and be gentle this time,
Sitting on the plate steam rising high,
And the delicious aroma travels through the sky.

To accompany we need the neeps and tatties,
We need some whisky too,
And if you want to do it right,
A few words from you know who?
For haggis made with heart and hand,
Is a taste of history, a feast so grand.
That Robert Burns told it so,
That on the 25th January when we celebrate the Bard,
And the Haggis is front and centre,
And is piped into place,
Why?
Because he is the Chieftain of the Pudding race.

I had every intention of getting up at 5am to beat the heat, and just after 5am next doors old Nissan Patrol coughed into life to give me that morning alarm call, however I turned the other cheek and didn’t get up till 7am.

It was closer to 9am before I headed off and it was already 23C, and I know it’s going to be hot today so I take extra water.

I’d thought of a new route to take but one voice is saying just go for an easy run and the other side is saying “Don’t be a big Jessie”

Voice 2 won and before you know it I’m in Ipswich centre heading for the bike track at Brassall which I’ll take for a half hour or so before I head back. By the time I get to the turn I need to take and head off up the hill it’s roasting, the heat from above and also from the concrete is getting worse so I have to stop for a bit and remove my bike helmet to cool down, this is the reason why I should’ve been up at 5am.

I reach the top of the hill and then I wander down through a housing estate that leads to the  road which will get me home. I jump back on a bit of the bike path and still have the energy to pass a family on mountain bikes.

I have to stop three more times over the last few kms, really because as soon as I hit a hill I’m beginning to overheat and so I stop before it gets too bad.

It’s 32C when I get back to the house after my ride and I sit out the back and drink the remaining water in both bottles till I feel human once more.

I got changed, because I was soaked and then ordered pizza when I got home and scoffed the lot very easily, in fact I was so hungry I could have eaten two 😋

On the way back from picking up the pizza I passed a bunch of cyclists and a few of them looked rather worse for wear, the heat was taking its toll on a few of them. One was sitting in the shade and really looked like shit, and I knew exactly how he felt.

I set the Air con to 26C and shut the house up and that’s where I stayed….