Jesus, Joseph and Mary ... who knew sitting in an examination room for 90 minutes having an allergist talk non-stop about your kid would be so exhausting? Not to mention stressful. My teeth ached like nobody’s business afterwards from all the clenching. I was a shell of a mother when we finally staggered out with... Continue Reading →

I have been a fairly absent parent over the school holidays. All work, very little play. Fortunately my ex came through with an Australia Day long weekend for the kids at Berowra Waters. So at least they ended the hols with a hurrah. I feel bad about them having such a mundane school break ...... Continue Reading →

Forget bouquets of flowers ... I was touched on Sunday night when DD delivered a packet of Gaviscon to my bedside table. A bunch of roses ain't gonna ease my middle-aged reflux. (Although I’ve since been told by fellow middle aged lovers that Nexium is the ultimate romantic reflux gesture.) Yesterday morning, I drove to... Continue Reading →

All the hairs on my arms stood on end yesterday as I discussed the Kathleen Folbigg case with my old school mates. They’d just been to the jail for a morning visit with Kathy. We met for brunch by the river, before heading back to the jail for an afternoon visit. I was floored by... Continue Reading →

I got a bit blue yesterday. I haven't been blue for ages, which has been lovely. But my stomach was so knotty with anxiety and sadness yesterday that I felt nauseous. Eating the last slice of white chocolate mud cake the youngest baked didn't help. It just enhanced the queasiness. I don't feel like picking... Continue Reading →

Along with the rest of the world, I was pretty shocked when Neil Finn joined Fleetwood Mac last year. I've been hooked on Neil since he warbled I Got You on Countdown in the early 80s, while Fleetwood Mac has been a slow burn since I fell in love with the rousing Tusk and later... Continue Reading →

I think DD is starting to enjoy being my “handbag” at media functions ... That’s how he described himself to guests at a whisky matching dinner we went to last night, held at Bennelong, the fancy restaurant at the Sydney Opera House. Neither of us would classify ourselves as big whisky fans, but ... Bennelong!... Continue Reading →

I was sooooo excited when my boxed set of the original Planet of the Apes arrived in the letterbox last week. As a kid, I was obsessed with the Planet of the Apes movies and TV series. I particularly adored Roddy McDowell, who played Cornelius in the first film and Galen in the subsequent TV... Continue Reading →

I had one of my standard eventful weekends, so I was looking forward to a peaceful ocean dip last night. But, as I drove through Narrabeen, the radio announcer informed me that Sydney's Northern Beaches had been inundated with bluebottles and would continue to be plagued with them for the rest of the week, Damn!... Continue Reading →

Yeah, nah, I'm still not jiggy with those "Your memories on Facebook" posts that pop up in my news feed. Facebook says: "Alana, we care about you and the memories that you share here. We thought you'd like to look back on this post from 5 years ago." No, Facebook, I really don't want to... Continue Reading →