Maybe in Oz

It's all Pinterest's fault, my obsession with pink lakes.  When I was researching our trip to Busselton and South - Western Australia I saw this pin of a pink lake in Esperance .  There was a lake named pink lake in town and a caravan park nearby called pink lake caravan park so I figured we better stay there and see Pink Lake. according to many on pinterest, this is the Pink Lake in Esperance I've kind of always had a love for things that are pink that aren't typically pink.  When I was young my brothers would launch model rockets and my dad helped me make one named Big Bertha.  Of course we painted it pink.  Then a few years later he gave me a pink swiss army knife with my name engraved on the blade.  Unfortunately it was lost a long time ago but I think that was one of my favourite presents ever.    So when I found out there was a pink lake, I knew it was something I had to see. When we drove around Pink Lake in Esperance it was disappo...

Yesterday I was finishing up the quilting on a custom order with just a few inches of quilting to go.  Then I hear a clank, see the needle break, and look down to find a large piece of the needle lodged in my thumb.  Oops.  I looked at it for a minute in disbelief, wishing there was an undo button.  The needle exited my nail at a very different angle than it entered, and I hadn't a clue how it was going to come out. the quilt I called Phil, who was in the middle of a long training run without his phone.  Then I texted a friend, still sort of in shock.  Ice it, she said.  Yes, ice.  The ice numbed it right up.  I took another look hoping the ice had magically removed the needle but no such luck.  the scene of the crime I kept waiting, and decided to brush my teeth and get ready for a long day at the ER.  I sent Phil another message with a picture of my thumb and a simple plea - help! hard to see her, but that black piece...

Over the Australia Day long weekend we went to Bright, a cute little town about a four hour drive from Melbourne.  Our friends have a holiday home there and invited us to join them.  Phil, along with our friend Glenda, signed up for the Alpine Classic bike ride, with Phil set to do 200 km and Glenda 250 km.   We arrived after dark Friday night so didn't get a chance to see the town then. but Saturday morning we had a look around to familiarize ourselves.  The town centre was a hub of activity, with a river running through it and lots of families taking advantage of the water park next to the river.  There was a French festival sharing space with the bike festival booths, which made for interesting people watching.  We had lunch at the Bright Brewery and then relaxed with some books and the tennis match in the afternoon.  A trip to the local Feathertop winery completed the day.   Feathertop Winery with Mt Buffalo in the background Sunday morn...

Last weekend Phil and his buddy went for another 7 Peaks ride, this time up Mt Buller.   Phil and Les I wasn't too impressed with Mt Buller and the nearby town when we explored it last year, but they convinced me to go back with them and I'm glad I did.  They started off on their ride, and I drove to the base of the mountain to wait for them.  I grabbed my book and found a nice quiet spot on the rocks facing the river. My view while reading The boys stopped for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and then they were off for the top of the mountain.  I headed up to explore a bit and wait for them at the top.   The last time we went there was a mountain bike race up at the top so I couldn't really explore the summit.  Instead I was stuck in the little ski village with not much to see or do.  This time, without the bike race I was able to drive to the base of the summit and from there hiked the rest of the way to the top.  It was a bit biz...

Last week I found myself in Geraldton - a 4 hour drive or one hour flight North of Perth - for work.  After taking care of the work we were there for, we had a couple hours to kill before our flight back to Perth.  With nothing else to do, we decided to tackle the Top 10 Things to do in Geraldton. The scenic site near Geraldton Top 10 things you MUST o in Geraldton To be honest, I couldn't be bothered with most of the things on the list, and a couple required helicopters.  The three that we did see (in some form) were plenty to give me a good feel for this funny little town. #2: Explore the beautiful foreshore and enjoy a bbq at the beach Well we didn't have a bbq, but we did see the foreshore.  The highlight was definitely the toilets, which didn't even get a mention on the list.  Dubbed Rubik's Loos, they were colourfully painted to look like Rubik's Cubes. Rubik's Loos #1: Watch the sun rise or set from the stunning HMAS Sydney II Memorial...