The Blog Post you have when you're not having a Blog Post

I promised myself I wouldn't blog tonight, I'd just go straight to bed when I got home from work.
This is the result!

I couldn't get a ticket to the footy as it was a sell-out, which in the end was a blessing in disguise cause West Coast won by 11 goals and I wouldn't have enjoyed watching that!

Instead I went to visit an old friend but I won't say any more about that now, it can wait till I upload some pictures and have more time.

I then finally located The Art Shed, an art supply shop in Myaree that I've been told about but never been able to find before. Finding it was well worth it, I got some bargains and have plenty of big blank canvases to work on.

The drive home to Busso was uneventful. A succession of signs on the highway promised a "HUGE GARAGE SALE" at Dawesville but it was in fact a piddly affair with a motley assortment of rubbish, trash and garbage.

I started in the taxi at 6.45pm and have just finished at 6.30am, the late shift being punishment for my sin of starting late. It was a pretty good shift, busy most of the night, a good earner, and some interesting customers. One of them was a former Carine student, Nathan, so we spent the trip to Yallingup catching up on each other's news. He was sporting a very fancy twirled moustache and makes a living as a Share Trader.
The last hour was the toughest, trying to stay awake enough to read the paper and answer the two calls we got for cabs.

I'm going to bed and I'd really like to sleep until after lunchtime.
I'll let you know how I got on!

Early Start

Despite being in a considerable amount of pain most of the day I played my first game of volleyball for a month tonight. Sadly we lost but it was good to be back playing.

Tomorrow I leave early for Perth for a full day of meetings.

I was planning to stay up there the night and come back Saturday morning for the kid's soccer game but we found out tonight we have a bye this week so I've decided to stay in Perth and go to the football to see West Coast play the Kangaroos, my first AFL game of the season. C'mon the Roos.

It will be a quick trip back after the footy so I can drive the taxi on Saturday night.

It's a long weekend so there should be plenty of time to sleep and recover after a hectic couple of days.

3 days to go

Normalcy is just three days away here at HoltPress, that's how long until the wife and mother of the family touches down after her jaunt to Adelaide. Things continue apace in her absence.
I've decided to go to Perth tomorrow and then pick Carolyn up from the airport on Thursday arvo. She could catch the bus happily enough but there are 3-4 things I can get done in the city and I'm timing it so that I can go to a mate's farewell at Kelmscott. Collo is leaving chaplaincy after about 15 years and I'd like to be there to mark the occasion. Hopefully I'll manage a Breakfast Club meeting while I'm up there, and do Country Week prep on Thursday before Carolyn arrives.

Tonight was spent ringing people, makeing arrangements and rearrangements regarding the kids. Favourite Daughter can look after herself, as can Jordy mostly but he has to go to Augusta on Thursday night for rehearsals, the big musical is on in a week and a half. He'll stay the night in Margaret River and come up to school on the bus Friday morning.
Sport Boy is staying with friends tomorrow night and we'll probably pick him up on Thursday night when we get home. I think I've covered everything, at home and at work to free me up enough to be able to go.

Just gotta hope someone remembers to feed the rabbit! Having protected it this long it would be a shame to drop the ball in the last couple of days!

I was interviewed on ABC radio this morning, talking about chaplaincy in schools and issues facing kids. It went pretty well until the end when I said "thanks Gillian" to the host whose name is Janine! When I realised I rang back to apologise. The producer said not to worry about it, someone else had called ger Geraldine earlier in the show!
Not sure how to do it but if I can work it out I'll post the audio of the interview, which I recorded!

Tonight I went to see "The Last King of Scotland", a heavy and disturbing film about Ugandan Dictator Idi Amin. Not for the feint-hearted!

Perth and Back

It's been a big day. After the late finish courtesy of the cab and the cricket I slept in as late as I could, then made the mistake of listening to the football. Geelong lost again. They're not going to make the finals. Mark Thompson will be sacked. The season is headed for more disappointment. Woe is me! Why was I born a Geelong fan?

Carolyn packed her clothes and I packed the kids in the car and we set off for Perth, in intermittent heavy rain. I don't know if the drought has broken but there has been plenty of rain in the last couple of days and it's extremely welcome, even if it makes driving a little more hazardous.

No time to stop for food so Sport Boy wasn't happy but I did grab some fries when I stopped for a toilet break at the start of the freeway. First stop in the city was "Off My Tree" a shop selling dubious items, so that Jordan could buy a very expensive belt! The cost of fashion!
Next stop, the Art Gallery to see the Young Perspectives Exhibition, featuring work from year 12 students from WA High Schools. It was FANTASTIC! So much brilliant artwork. Even Jordan found a few things he liked. I particularly liked a couple of big bold brightly coloured portraits, and a brilliant rendition of the London Tube map describing the life of a student at Melville SHS. Hard to describe, better to have a look yourself. Click here then open the interactive site to scan through all the pieces in the exhibition.

Much to Sport Boy's relief we then went over to Vic Park to get some dinner, a Jesters pie for him and Noodle Box for the rest of us. Seeing as we were in the neighbourhood we dropped in on the Brauns. Andy is away in Tassie but Rose and two of the girls were home so we had a quick visit and ate dinner there before heading over to Cam and Louise's place in Belmont to drop Carolyn off. Cam's Mum Anne was there too, first time we've seen here since we went and visited her at Albany nearly two years ago so it was lovely to catch up with all the Teros.

Goodbyes said, the boys and I headed for home. Sport Boy slept most of the way while Jordy and I talked about jobs and careers and youthwork and uni and music and lots of stuff. It was a good trip and he seemed to enjoy the opportunity to chat. There were plenty of laughs and stories on both legs of the journey, particularly when he regaled us with impersonations of Dr Tran clips from You Tube. Typically dumb adolescent humour, made much funnier by his accents and enthusiasm.
As we were driving to Belmont I asked him to get the street directory from under my seat and with much groaning and huffing and effort he finally managed to retrieve it, and said "I farted three times trying to get this."
A classic example of "Too much information!"

Carolyn leaves for Adelaide in the morning.
She'll be away until the 10th.
Will we survive?