Don't cry for me, Arthur Negus...... The truth is, I never left you ....... All through my wild days, my mad existence .......I kept my promise......... Don't keep your distance ........

Mum passed away peacefully on Tuesday evening with Jo, James & Dad holding her hands and surrounding her with love. It is by far one the hardest moments of my life..... not being able to hug her and say goodbye, not to be there when everyone else is. But I know the last thing she would want is for me to postpone my treatment. To delay everything for her. And to be honest, when I see that cancer has taken her from us, the last thing I want to do is delay my treatment. I am now more determined than ever to beat this.
The lead up to mum's passing was by far the hardest part. Waiting for the news to come through.... writing the letter to her.... and calling her on Tuesday to tell her myself how much I loved her. These were the hardest things I have ever done. Being so far away from her has left me a little numb. But I also have the benefit of being able to remember her as she was before the end. I am lucky in that respect. I will remember her face and her laugh and the picture in my mind will be of a healthy and happy person. Not frail and sick. 
I feel quite sad that I am not able to be with my dad and brother and sister at the moment. They are all together and helping each other through the loss. I am over here separated from them when all I want to do is hug them all and be with them. Life certainly isn't fair sometimes. At least I have Dirk. He has (as always) been amazing. 

And so now the arrangements are being made for her funeral. To say the last goodbyes and I guess, for those of us left behind, to find some closure and peace. 
One of the hardest things to cope with is the random times that sadness hits you. The past few days I've been ok one minute then tears streaming the next. At work, I can be happily distracted with an email working on something, then the next minute overcome with sadness and find myself sobbing. I can't imagine what it's like for dad..... Hopefully time heals and takes away the hits of sadness so they aren't as raw. I don't think I'll ever get over missing mum. I'm already "talking" to her. Everyone keeps saying that she's probably here with me already...... I imagine she's here.... with dad..... with all of us. 
I can't imagine what life is going to be like from now. I've never really thought about what it would be like without my mum. I can't imagine not being able to speak to her, not being able to ask her questions.... ask her for a recipe, chat to her about stuff. Everything is just so unfair sometimes. Dirk said he is going to miss chatting to mum about cricket & current affairs. She loved having a chat. And there were always little "parcels" arriving in the post. Little things that she would see at the shops and we would receive with a little note saying " I saw this and thought of you" slipped inside. Jo & I will have to continue that gesture.  I know that there are so many people that will miss her too. The amount of messages we have all received has been phenomenal. She made friends with everyone. I imagine the girls lunches she was always going to, will miss her company - not to mention the catering she always did too !!
Anyway, next Thursday is her funeral. I have my bone marrow biopsy on Tuesday. Then the following week start the stem cell harvesting..... I'll write more as we get closer. At the moment, all I can think about is mum and how much I love her & am going to miss her.
But I am so thankful that I have the rest of my family. My dad, my sister & my brother and sis in law. My nephews & niece. We are lucky in so many ways. And no matter how far apart we are, our family love keeps us strong and close together. That is one legacy that mum has left us with..... family love and the strength to follow our dreams no matter how much distance it puts between us. Because our love for each other spans any distance and keeps us close no matter what.
I'll always love you mum...... 

You, you may say I'm a dreamer....... but I'm not the only one........I hope some day you'll join us ....... And the world will be as one.......

I've had the sad news this weekend that my mum is quite sick. She has gone back into hospital and is not expected to come home. Her cancer has now spread and her organs are gradually failing. My dad & brother are with her and my sister is flying from NZ to be there too. Unfortunately, due to my cancer & the start of my stem cell treatment, I won't be able to get over to see her. So I have written the following letter to her.....


Dear Mum,


This is a very hard letter to write. But I have to let you know how much you mean to me and how much I love you. You always said if you were sick and couldn't look after yourself, then you'd want someone to shoot you. And I was the child that you knew would pull the trigger !! Well as it turns out, they won't let me come over !! Typical !! It never turns out how you wish, hey !! I'm sorry I can't be there mum. 


My first ever memory that I have, is from Kingsley Crescent. I'm not sure how old I was, but remember that old washing basket you had? The one that looked like a snake charmers basket.... I remember being in the kitchen and standing on my tippy toes trying to look inside it while you were pulling out the washing ready for the machine. I must have been about 2 or 3 because I'm sure that basket wasn't much more than 2 feet hight. Another memory is making tea for you and dad one morning, but because we weren't allowed to use the kettle, we made tea with hot water from the tap !! We thought it was perfect, I'm pretty sure you and dad pretended to drink it !! There are so many memories from our childhood.....


When we moved to Shenstone, we embarked on a whole lot more adventures..... James came along and he became my play doll. Our massive garden became our playground and most of my memories seem to be around summer and bbq's. Memories of you and dad all dressed up, going off to some ball or Round Table / Ladies Circle charter night are so vivid. The smell of dad's aftershave and the vision of you in the most beautiful ball gown walking into the lounge to show us, is something I'll never forget. You always looked so amazing, and so happy. We were always included in the excitement of everything.... whether we went with you or not. 


And then as I turned into a moody, hormonal, crabby teenager I became a nightmare. Arguing at every opportunity..... sulking at everything you said and trying to hurt you with words. I moved to Australia in '89 (aged 19) and even though it was hard for you, I was never made to feel like I shouldn't go. You told me to follow my dreams and that if you were offered the same opportunity, you would have wanted to go too. It wasn't until I was 29, that we really sorted out that moody, crabby, teenager attitude. When you came out to Australia in '99 it was like I was back to being a teenager.... and I acted like one. When Snapper told me off and told me to grow up, I realised I had been acting like a spoilt brat. It was time to be an adult and make friends with my mum. And I think from that time on, we became good friends. I realised what I'd been missing out on. I saw you for the gorgeous, funny friend that everyone else saw. 


Since then, I've loved every minute of our friendship. You are my idol. I admire you so much, the way you effortlessly complete things. The way you organise us all !! We sure are going to miss that. Everyone who meets you instantly loves you. Even over the past 18 months, you have made friends wherever you have been. I'm pretty sure that there will be nurses at the hospital that will be missing you already. 
Mum, I want you to know that I love you more than anything. I am going to miss you every single day. Who am I going to go to when I need a recipe? Who is going to help me sort out my wardrobe? Who is going to pack my suitcase with freshly ironed clothes? I'm so bloody angry that you won't be around. BUT.... it's ok.... we'll all be ok. We'll be ok because we all love each other. We are all so lucky to have the family we have, and with the memories that we have. There's not many families that are as lucky as ours. Even though we are miles apart, we will always be close. 


I love you mum. With all my heart. I wish you peace.
All my love forever - number 2 xxxxxxx

Every little step I take, you will be there ...... Every little step I make, we'll be together .......

So here's a quick update for you all on today's hospital visit.....

The next step is the Autologous Stem Cell Replacement.(ASCR) I went and met with my new haematologist specialist this morning. Dr Brad. Nice chap - very chatty, helpful and I didn't feel at any stage that he was trying to rush me or get rid of us. He explained everything and left us plenty of time to ask any questions. The nice thing about him was that he also specialises in Multiple Myeloma too. He is involved in the research and clinical trials associated with MM and has a keen interest in any of the research. At least this means he will have a vested interest in anything that happens throughout my treatment. He made me feel very comfortable about the next stage. We were also introduced to Tina the nurse practitioner who will be overseeing my treatment. She showed us around and went through the whole procedure. We made all the necessary appointments for bloods, chemotherapy, bone marrow biopsy etc etc.... and then sat and chatted more about what to expect.

The Stem Cell Process

It's all a bit daunting to be honest, but I did feel that I would be OK. I wasn't told it was all going to be fine. I was told it was going to be hard, a little bit painful and tiring. But at the same time, I was also assured that I would be under the best care possible and that they would be looking after me every step of the way.

So next week I go back in for bloods and a bone marrow biopsy. Then at the end of the month I start the chemo for the stem cell collection. This is where I will have a high dose of Cycloblastin (probably 2g) and will more than likely lose all of my hair..... I was offered a wig voucher ! - I will have to self administer growth factor injections for a few days before-hand and then will go in for a 5 hour stem cell collection, after blood tests to determine that the stem cells are at the right levels.

Once they have enough for two ASCR they will freeze the stem cells and send me home. After that, it's a matter of booking the time to have them transplanted back into me. This stage is still not 100% clear, there was so much information to take in on the first part that they didn't go too much into the next part. But needless to say, it's all starting and we're going ahead with it......


Well, that's all I have for now..... just thought I'd let you all know. Feel free to ask any questions......

I sing myself to sleep…...A song from the darkest hour…….Secrets I can’t keep……..Insight of the day……..Swing from high to deep…….Extremes of sweet and sour…….Hope that God exists…….I hope I pray…...

Do you ever feel like you're not actually in your body ? ... sort of disconnected from your skin.... nothing feels quite right. Your fingers tingle and everything you touch doesn't quite feel real. When I try and describe how these drugs have made me feel over the past 5 months, I can't quite put it into words.... what I'm writing is not how I want to describe it !!!

• That feeling just before you vomit......
• That feeling when you see a footy player fall and snap his leg on a bad fall....and then they play it in slo-mo.
• That feeling when you're freezing cold & step into a hot bath.....
• That feeling when you slice your finger and you see the bone .... before it stings....
• That feeling when you see a small kid get their fingers trapped in a slamming car boot ...
• That feeling when you have really bad flu and feel all weak..... Then cough ! .....

And meanwhile.... the tips of my fingers and toes tingle and go between feeling normal and numbness. This has caused me to start biting my nails again ... so now i have the most awful looking hands & fingers.
The blood in my body fizzes and sloshes. When it's fizzing, you feel like you've just come off a roller coaster ride. When it's sloshing, you feel like you've just been on a boat for 10 hours and are trying to get your sea legs back.
My jaw feels constantly tight, so I have to yawn & stretch my mouth all the time. I pull the most amazing faces whilst driving to work trying to stretch out my mouth, lips & jaw !! People probably glance at me and think I'm weird !! (or worse)
The pain in my back has just about gone now, except for a slight twinge here and there.....this is like someone giving you a dead arm.... but it's in my lower hip/ bum.... you go to stand up, but it's dead or weak, so you stumble ... just a little.
The tingling in my lips and mouth feels like I've eaten a bag of the hottest chillis, but without the heat..... Just the tingling is there....
The change in taste buds is just plain annoying. Some days even the thought of water makes my stomach turn. The bitter after taste is like that first sip of water to clear your mouth after you've just puked up !!
And finally, I'm now wearing glasses.... only for reading, only for close computer work.... but things are a lot more blurry these days.

So on Friday morning..... first thing..... I get to find out the next part. And I think I'm a little bit nervous !! It's all that's on my mind at the moment.... We have so many unanswered questions. We have no idea what to expect....... it's just unknown at the moment.

• Cancer is like a gatecrasher at a party that you can't get rid of without calling in the 'big guns' to help !!
• Cancer invades like squatters in a unsuspecting house.... they say possession is 9/10th of the law..... to get rid of them takes effort, time, patience and a planned attack.
• Cancer is like algae growing in a river.... it's only when the fish start dying that you realize there's a problem, but to get rid of it takes immense measures....

Hopefully Friday will bring some answers for me .......... 

you brought hope, you brought light……..conquered fear, it wasn’t always easy……...stood your ground, kept your faith……….

And as The Royal Barge moors against the banks of the River Thames..... I search for my bed. It's 12:30pm on this little Commonwealth country and as happy as I am to sit & watch Lizzy all night, I have things to do tomorrow so can't stay up much longer. I will have to watch the replay of the highlights. But I must say, at least our public holiday WA Day (previously known as Foundation Day) has coincided with Diamond Jubilee day. Although having said that I'm a little disappointed that the whole Commonwealth doesn't see fit to give us 2 days off to celebrate our Queen !! ..... I'm just saying.....
 We've had a fab day today... I made some macaroons to take over to our neighbours (G & C) where we were invited for lunch. Loved it. They are great entertainers and we sat outside looking over our roof at a slightly better (?) view than ours (higher than our place but couldn't see the city.....) and ate and drank and talked non-stop. Before I knew it myself & C had polished off 2 bottles !! As I said lovely. I was feeling pretty druggy. Yesterday was the start of the "run out of pills cycle7" Dr B told me to carry on taking Thalidomide every day, but to just run out of everything else. So Saturday I took my second to last dose of Cycloblastin and then yesterday, today & tomorrow is all I have to take of Dexamethasone and then that's it !! wahooooooo !! I won't know what's hit me not having to take those drugs..... although with the next appointment with my new Dr B looming, who knows how long it's going to be before he sends me in for the mega doses of chemo and the start of the Stem Cell Replacement !! ah well... mentally it's nice to know I'm nearly out of pills. It's been 129 days of them so far.
So anyway, back to today and my baking !! We got back from G & C's and I needed to prepare for tomorrow. It's Dirk's dad's birthday and he has requested everyone to bring a curry. I decided I needed to bake more macaroons too, oh and a birthday cake for him. So we hit the kitchen. My macaroons were ok-ish.... (ok so the last batch "may" have been out of a Donna Hay box) and mine were a real recipe..... the weren't shiny !! Does anyone know why? They looked a bit matt and not smooth.... I'll have to google why. They tasted bloody lovely though. The chocolate ganache filling works a treat!! I made the cake, but am filling it tomorrow with jam & butter cream. And the Rogan Josh is in the slow cooker over night ..... smells bloody delicious.... I'll be dreaming of India tonight..... or maybe Leicester !!!

Sitting in the Chair Relaxing

Zometa Infusion

Seeing as I'm coming to the end of one stage of this health journey and about to start the next, I've been doing a bit of reflecting. It's been a bloody tough 4 1/2 months in some respects.... especially for Dirk who's had to sit and watch, worry and cop every mood swing that he has just happened to be in the vicinity of, when they happen !! (ok not sure if that sentence makes sense but I think you'll know what I'm trying to say) ... but back to me... I'm not saying it's been an easy few months, in fact anything but easy. But I also appreciate how lucky I've been through all of this so far.   Sitting in the hospital on Friday as I had my Zometa infusion shows me this. There are all sorts of people in there for (I'm guessing) all sorts of chemo at every stage of treatment. Some look sicker than others. But they all smile - most of the time - but I see how lucky I've been so far. I've carried on working, and although some days have been a real struggle, I haven't had to quit or even go part-time. I've remained relatively healthy throughout. These next few weeks I need to be really careful. There is a lot of sickness around at the moment, and the last thing I want to do is pick up a bug right before I start the stem cell stage. I'm a bit scared about this next part. Mainly because I really don't know what to expect, how I'm going to react to the treatment and how I'm going to feel. With the way everything has gone so far, I'm sure I'll be fine. I know it's going to be tough.... but I'm young, healthy and strong. So this is a real positive. But it's still scary !! One of the things I'm a bit scared about is all the needles and drugs. I'm not scared of needles at all but I get the feeling that all the needles I've had so far are nothing compared to what I'm about to experience. And the drugs I've had so far..... a drop in the ocean compared to the next stage .... yikes !! Oh well, if I expect the worst, I can look back later on and say "well it wasn't as bad as I was expecting" !! hahaha. And there is always someone doing it much harder than I am, so I do appreciate how lucky I am. No more whinging...... especially as I'm no longer a pommy !! OMG can I say that?? Sorry mum, I'll always be English, don't worry. I know my heritage !! Especially on day like today too !! BTW - the title lyrics of todays blog are from Gary Barlow & Andrew Lloyd Webber's special Diamond Jubilee song 'Sing" I haven't heard it, I just found it and Googled the lyrics, so if it's a really crap ditty, I completely apologise. But I did read that Harry did a tambourine solo on the song which I thought was nice..... wonder if Pippa finds that a turn on?? I guess he'll find that out later at the after party !! And we will read all about it in next week's illustrious and fabulously articled Women's Magazines.... and I will ready said article in about 10 years time in some dentists waiting room and find out what really happened as I don't read the aforementioned mags !!
And so .... time for sleep. Night night, God Bless all and
God Save The Queen !!

I wonder if you can pick up.....My accent on the phone.....When I call across the country......When I call across the world......

The Benefication of Coal.... Washability Tables..... Interpolation..... this is the current subject I am sitting in, at work. As I look around the room everyone seems to understand what is being talked about..... and then there's me !!! Although I just got a quick look at the person's laptop next to me, and she's looking at holidays in Koh Samui !! .....
My week so far has been ok.... in an "ordinary" world I would have been enjoying the week. (From a nerdy... I like my job perspective) But add Cycloblastin, Dexamethasone & Thalidomide to the mix and the fun factor changes completely. My business unit is running a training week for all of our technical people from our international offices. It has been arranged predominantly by the operations manager. All good I hear you cry..... until he took sick last Wednesday and hasn't been back to work since !! The visitors arrived on Fri / Sat, with a day out to The Swan Valley organised for Sunday. And out of the five people that would be running the conference for the week (from the Perth office) three of them were sick. So Sunday I went out on a bus to play Supa Golf and taste wine, cheese & chocolate.... not bad at all actually !! I even managed to come home with a case of wine and an oversized bag of chocolate too !!

It is now Wednesday and the week has been run mostly by one guy that has only been with the company for a few months.... (He'll probably want a pay rise now !! yikes !!) It's actually not been too bad, but the stress levels have been running pretty high, as I'm worried that some of the content has been missed..... Being a "non technical" person there's not a great deal of value I can add, so I just sit here and make sure that I look interested and am here to support the "technical" people and make sure no-one falls asleep!! Monday & Tuesday were horrendous for me. They always are, coming down from a Big-Drug-Saturday. It's the shittiest kind of feeling. The worst part is the complete exhausted feeling. Every bone, muscle, blood cell and tissue in your body is tired and sluggish, so to do anything is a real struggle. And the birdcage mouth is beyond awfulness !! The hardest part though is pretending that you're ok. I'm not sure how many people I fooled, Dirk will tell you that he certainly copped it back at home, most of my niceness was exhausted by the time I got home..... I knew I'd start to feel ok by today... and I have. The cloud is lifting. I'm taking them out tonight for dinner in the hope this will score me some brownie points !!

I really should get myself a Dictaphone though. The past few days I've had the most amazing ideas that I wanted to blog about..... little subjects that I thought would be good to discuss, but for the life of me I can't remember any of them now.. I can say they were amazing ideas because you'll never know !! If I remember them now and add them, you might think they're shit ideas..... but in my mind they were bloody good ones !! I'm not even close to remembering them now. Yesterday when I was driving home, they mentioned on the radio it is 209 days to Christmas.... this is a good Facebook update (I thought to myself) I knew it would wind people up.... I was excited to see who would bite .... didn't take long !! It's like supporting "parents who slap their kids" Love it !! I'm a big supporter ....

Next Friday is the day I get to meet my new Dr. Another heaematologist. He will go through the procedure of the Autologous Stem Cell Replacement and I should have more of an idea about timing etc after this appointment. This leaflet explains quite simply about the procedure. It goes wthout saying that it's going to be a tough journey..... at random times my mind starts to think about what's ahead. I can be in the middle of a conversation and suddenly I'm thinking about stem cell replacement and chemo...... or half way through a phone call at work, it's not hard to lose your train of thought when this happens. Sometimes I don't know if it's better to be alone with my thoughts or worse.... It can be pretty echoey in my mind sometimes. Other times I can't even hear myself think because of the cacophony !!

Eye's are drooping like you wouldn't believe so going to sign out and publish this, but I will edit again tomorrow so......... watch......... this..............space................

and I'll sail her up the west coast…. through villages and towns…….. I'll be on my holidays……. they'll be doing their rounds…... they'll ask me how I got her I'll say "I saved my money"…… they'll say isn't she pretty that ship called dignity.........

What a fantastic few days away we just had. I took my laptop away with me so I could blog whilst away !! Fat chance !! No chance !! Far too busy reading trashy beach novel & basking by the pool.... when it got too warm dipping in said pool and then returning to said trashy beach novel to continue reading about the saga of the girl that lost her engagement ring only to fall in love with the guy she met when she found a mobile phone in the rubbish bin.... I know you want to know so much more about the book but that's all I'm going to divulge to you !! I mean, you might stumble across this book one day so I won't give away the ending..... although I'm guessing you may be able to take a wild stab in the dark as to how it all ends up?

Anyway... Broome !! aahhhhh... total relaxing bliss. Five days was not long enough, but we had a fab time all the same. Great company with our friends Ben & Bec. Just perfect people to travel with. No fuss, same interests and easy going. It took us all a couple of days to wind down from Perth life / work life / the last few months etc etc. We arrived in Broome at midday on Friday so went straight to the pool and lay down. I think I fell asleep. The rest of the afternoon is all a daze. I can't remember too much as we were so zonked from the drain of the past few months. Our friends were't arriving until later that evening so we had a bit of time to acclimatise and get a feel for the resort, get our bearings and arrange a table for dinner. They arrived around 7pm so we went straight to the restaurant and caught up over steak and vino. Not a bad start to the holiday. I started to feel a bit tired and achy so took off around 9pm for bed. I woke up the next day with a pretty bad sore throat. Hadn't slept well, and by the morning was feeling ... well, pretty shit really ! So straight to the local Dr's for something to help. He gave me a 3 day course of antibiotics. Brilliant ! I was fixed within 24 hours. Never again will I opt for the 10 day doses. 3 days and it was all gone.

That first full day (Day 2) we all pretty much zombied out by the pool and did a lot of staring around. The days are around 30C. We did head into town briefly and did a quick shop for snacks & drinks for the room. I also had to purchase a jumper as it gets quite cool at night. Down to about 17C which is chilly when you are sitting outside and have only bought light summer tops or singlets to wear - gotta love Best & Less for a bargain !!! But that was about it. Evenings were always at The Sunset Bar & Grill where you could watch the amazing sunset and then the camels coming in from the beach. The hardest decision is whether to order a cocktail, a beer or a glass of wine.

Day 3 we decided to plan our daily tourist duties. 

There were only a couple of things we wanted to do.... a camel ride and a sunset cruise on a yacht (well an old pearl logger) I had decided that I'd rather like to go out to a pearl farm so Dirk & I decided to do that one by ourselves. 

So at 4pm on Sunday we took to the beach and were introduced to the camels... I got Alice ..... Alice? ....who the fuck is Alice? She was a sweet thing, pretty friendly and liked to be scratched. We became firm friends in that hour.... I'm not sure she'll remember me now but I'll never forget her !! Apart from the annoying backpacker in front of me that thought she knew everything about sand crabs and photography it was a really enjoyable ride. ("Get a big black dog up ya" ......Backpacker !!! - that's for you Nags) After the sunset ride we headed back to the hotel, quickly freshened up and we had booked to go to the Thai restaurant at the hotel - very nice - a perfect way to finish off the day. We were well and truly beginning to relax now. The boys had played tennis and crazy golf the previous day and had a date with a table tennis table to decide who was the overall winner..... all bets were off .... Bec & I went to bed !! 

Day 3 was the day Dirk & I had decided to go Pearl shopping .... <cough>.... I mean go and learn about how Pearl farming is done in Broome. We had to be outside the hotel ready to go by 8am !! yikes... which also meant breakfast was at 7:30am !! Double yikes.... that's the earliest I'be been up in ages. But I managed it.... just. We were squeezed onto a bus with a bunch of over 70's. We were the youngest by about 30 years - at least !! It was 1/2 hour bus ride to Willie Creek Pearl Farm - actually just the next beach from Cable Beach which was only approx 5 km's away up the coast, but 38km's by road. Most of the trip was on a dark red, iron rich, dirt track. Straight past the Police lines and the protesters against Woodside's Gas Hub at James Price Point. And up into Willie Creek farm. We were introduced to the "gang" (more backpackers) and then shown to a tin shed where we were taught about the history and how to's of pearl farming. It was actually very interesting. And I also got to stick my fingers into a oyster's scrotum and pull out the growing pearls. There were four of them in there !! Bloody hell - even the backpacker was also amazed !! Said he hadn't see 4 come out of a scrotum before !! Yeah right, I bet he says that to all the girls !! After the lesson, we were treated to morning tea and then were whisked away to a small tinny (boat) and taken out to the creek where they had a "simulated" oyster string out in the ocean. We were shown how they are cleaned and told about the history and procedures of cleaning and checking the shells. The a boat ride through the estuaries... everyone had their eyes peeled for crocs but we didn't see any. After we returned to dry land (and lucky as Dirk was getting queazy from the 20 minute boat ride) we were then taken to the 'pièce de résistance'..... the shop !! However, at this point we were reminded that during morning tea, I had excitedly signed us up for a helicopter ride ...... suckers !!!..... so we were whisked away to the Helipad (dirt gravel clearing) next to the shop and taken up on a 5 minute ride over the bay and estuary - by another backpacker - I have to say though, it was totally amazing. The views and scenery were fantastic and you couldn't have seen it that way any other way. Totally worth being ripped off for. So back to the shop, where we now had only 5 minute left of shopping. I saw something I liked, but there wasn't the exact one that fitted me available. I'm pretty sure the poor bugger that was serving me worked on a commission, as he had just about every pearl in the shop on the counter and was doing the most amazing sell job on me. But I left confused and empty handed..... a little disappointed ..... but I had a plan.......

We were escorted back to our retiree coach and started the trip back down the bumpy red tracks also known as the Broome Highway !! On the way out that morning, just before our hotel, I had spotted a Willie Creek Pearl Showroom. This was my cunning plan..... I got the bus driver to drop us here on the way back (much to Dirk's dismay - I think he thought he had got off lightly... asif !!!) ..... and low and behold.... they had the exact bracelet that wasn't available in the other store. Can you believe it.... I mean... what luck !! I didn't leave empty handed after all !!! hee hee !! Fabulous !!

We (finally) returned to the resort to find our friends, have a dip in the pool and have some lunch at the pool bar. Lots of oohs and ahhs from Bec over the pearl <insert happy grin here> That evening we ventured into town and went for tea at Matso's Brewery - where Dirk decided to share the beer tasting with me and got quite merry very quickly !! Hilarious for us all.
It was now Day 4 of the hols and I was beginning to realise that this was our last day. So I had better make it a good one !! 3 straight hours on the sunbed getting as golden as I could - there was no way I was returning to Perth without some summer glow about me !! And at 1pm we were once again in reception waiting for a bus to take us to our sunset cruise. The demographics this time were much more mixed and relatively younger ( I was pleased to say)
The bus was also full so this was obviously a popular one !! We were driven just a few minutes south of Cable Beach and onto the sand. Then asked to remove our shoes and jump into a tinny where we would be taken out to the boat (yacht?) The Intombi - a beautiful old Pearl Lugger that had been painstakingly restored and was now used for sunset cruises. Once on board the bar was opened and orders were taken. I decided it was a Bacardi & Coke kind of day.... just perfect. We were brought drinks and then told we could jump into the water while the boat slowly cruised up the coast line. There was a long rope to hold onto and also a boom net to sit in. Drinks could be passed down to you too if you liked. About 10 people jumped in (all of us included) and after getting kicked and almost drowned by some fat twat I decided to get back out.... easier said than done. I nearly lost my top and bottoms hanging onto the rope (and I'm sure the skipper of the boat started going faster as he saw I was loosing them) but eventually managed to pull myself up the rope and then steps and back to my B&C.... nibbles were offered around and we cruised on. It was gorgeous. The four of us found a nice little spot at the stern (?) (back) of the boat and settled in for the cruise. Ben & I decided to have one last swim - this time none else did so it was just the two of us - much better. The once back on board the sunset part of the cruise started. More B&C's and the sun started to set..... There was almost no wind, the sea was felt and still and the sun sank into the horizon. The perfect end to a perfect holiday (almost) 

We returned to the resort, quickly showers and changed and met at the Italian restaurant within the resort. This was a nice one !! I ordered a champagne cocktail while we waited for Ben & Bec and we relaxed.... some more.... again......

The food was fantastic.... I had tortellini with soft shell crab and pearl meat (from the menu - prawn & pearl meat tortellini, shaved fennel salad, crispy soft shell crab, lime & herb butter sauce).... bloody gorgeous. Best tasting dish I've had in AGES and would highly recommend it. Still dreaming of it now as I write this (btw it is now 3:27am - I am soooo in trouble tomorrow morning when I have to get up !!..... must finish)

So this was the perfect end to a perfect holiday..... great friends, great location, great weather, great sightseeing.... what more could you want?

We got home around lunch time on Wednesday - I was absolutely knackered !! I think my pills had finally got the better of me. I'd also forgotten to take my dexa's with me so had to take them as soon as I got in - better late than never - we cuddled and cuddled the furries. Decided to bath them and then took them to the park to dry off. Our legend of a house-sitter had once again done a fantastic job. As much as we hate leaving them all, at least we have someone that looks after them so well and they don't have to go into a kennel when we go away..... after that we pretty much collapsed on the couch. Only to catch the weather forecast and be told it was dropping to 5C overnight !! WTF !!! Dirk was very quickly sent into the garage to bring up the gas heater !! Winter is finally here !!

Work today and back into the slog.... Being on Dexa's always helps as it gives me the energy I need. The downside is my loss of taste and then the coming off them..... I have 2 more days then will bomb out !!

Well, I'd better leave it here as it's nearly 4am and I'm in more trouble than the early settlers. I've been busy baking sausage rolls and cupcakes for tomorrow's (todays) Biggest Morning Tea for Cancer Research..... Feel free to donate !!.....

   

 

    

    



       

Footnote: no responsibility is taken for the layout or spelling mistakes found on this entry.... it's too god-damn late to check .... I'll do it tomorrow - if I have the time !!!
Thanks :-)