It’s a mystery

It has been four days since I lasted blogged.

It feels like a lifetime.

The break kicked off with a hunt for coffee on Friday morning, as my local wasn’t open until 8am. Way too late. Then I went a walk with my friend Alice.

I grabbed some hot cross buns afterwards and drove off to see a blog follower for a chitter chat about cruising. We’d never met until Friday and she suggested catching up at her place.

I was joking before my visit that if anything happened to me the winning answer to the murder mystery was Maryann … in her living room … with a tea cup.

Nothing happened to me.

Maryann was a lovely host who patiently answered my 50 million questions about cruising. She’s an expert – she’s been on 10 Ponant cruises alone! I had a lot of fun picking her brain.

Her all-time favourite holiday was French gastronomic barge cruise. I looked it up when I got home and thought it seemed quite reasonably priced until I realized it was in US dollars. So that one might have to wait a few years.

I am still considering a Raja Ampat cruise and I am idly contemplating going on a snorkelling trip to a reef called Rowley Shoals in Western Australia (it receives less than 400 visitors a year, which makes it oddly desirable). There are also a few non-cruise options bubbling in my head, including Lord Howe Island and Hyams Beach.

And I read that Jacques Cousteau once named Fiji (pictured main) the soft coral capital of the world. This discovery is torturing me. I really want to go to the soft coral capital of the world, but I have vowed never to return to Fiji after the great COVID-19 disaster of Christmas 2021.

I’ll get back to you on what I decide.

On Friday afternoon I dropped DD’s old car back to him after having it on loan for six weeks while the youngest had mine.

We went to an American friend of DD’s for a Southern barbecue – think slow roasted pork, coleslaw, mac n cheese and mashed potato. Yuuuuuum.

The house they are renting has the most spectacular views. Very jealous!

On Saturday morning I took the dogs to see the sunrise at Avalon headland. DD was still fast asleep. There was a lot of cloud low on the horizon, so it wasn’t a dazzling sunrise, but still gorgeous.

At 8.15am my friend Emily kindly drove up to collect me from DD’s and we walked around Narrabeen Lake for the next two hours. I went to the bathroom before I left, but still almost wet my pants twice on the route because I was absolutely busting at regular intervals. Freddie the Fibroid must have shifted position and been sitting on my bladder.

Then Emily dropped me home to do a few hours work on my new project. On Saturday afternoon I drove to Surf Deck at the Collaroy Hotel for “linner” with DD’s former workmate Jules and her husband.

Linner, I have discovered, is the afternoon version of brunch.

It was such a gorgeous day and our friends loved my new favourite beachside dining spot.

There was a dreadlocked bloke playing the conga and singing like an angel, which made it even more fun. We arrived at 3.30pm and it was dark when we left. All other details are a bit hazy and we caught the bus home.

On Sunday I was on duty for work so I popped up to Avalon headland for another sunrise and strong flat white with a magnificent view before heading home.

Then I had a relatively quiet day, doing some more work on my secret project. DD went back to Surf Deck to collect his car and have lunch with his kids. The staff were very impressed by his fortitude.

The health kick sort of started on Monday with my first Pump class in many weeks, followed by a swim at DD’s in the arvo and ratatouille and roast lamb for dinner.

I also had my first-ever car wash experience. You know the ones where about four guys swarm over the car with water spray guns and vacuuums? What took me so long? Awesome!

It would be even better if I was going to get the opportunity to enjoy the new car, but there’s something wrong with the youngest’s 18th birthday car. FFS. So she’s borrowing mine for another week.

And, just to top things off, I thought Johnny Depp sent me a friend request last night on Facebook. But I wasn’t wearing my glasses and it was actually some random dude called Johnny Deep. I literally get a scam artist a day trying to friend me on Facebook. I really wish they would all rack off.

How have you been?

Song of the day: Bob Marley “No woman no cry”