I ducked up to Newcastle yesterday to celebrate my dad's birthday. We took him a goodie box with a crossword scratchie, a bottle of wine with a dog on it, some rocky road and a copy of my cocktail book. Men in their 80s aren't the easiest people to buy for, but he seemed pleased.... Continue Reading →

In case you missed my last blog post, I scored the fabulous job of judging the Australian Gin Awards this week. Yesterday I gathered with my fellow judges to celebrate the completion of our mammoth task of sampling hundreds of spirits and the results, including deciding on the country's Best in Show gin for 2024.... Continue Reading →

Yesterday involved me doing a pretty equal mix of stupid and awesome things. The stupid kicked off with buying the wrong charging cable for my new mobile phone. I backed it up by going to the coffee shop, grabbing a strong flat white and dropping it on the floor of my apartment building's carpark. Coffee... Continue Reading →

I walked the dogs yesterday in pre-dawn darkness, then raced home for a quick shower so I would be ready when the plumber arrived. He didn't. At 8.30am I rang the plumbing company and asked where the bloody hell he was. They said he'd been in the building since 7am. It turned out the retirees... Continue Reading →

Sugar Paws sends me two reminders before every grooming appointment - one a week before and one a day before - to ensure Charlie and Bilbo turn up. Actually, pretty much every appointment I make these days involves reminders or some sort of digital confirmation that I have booked. All except one. Last Friday night... Continue Reading →

DD has been suggesting for ages that it’s time to replace my mobile phone. My current one - an iphone 7 - is on its last legs. It will be 90% charged one minute, then 1% the next. I also take a lot of photos while wearing my many hats, so a good camera is... Continue Reading →

I was window shopping in Avalon a few weeks ago when I found myself strangely drawn to a pair of pants with a creased golden finish. I went inside and asked what sizes they came in. The shop assistant said “they’re one size fits all”. I was intrigued. I tried them on and felt fabulous.... Continue Reading →

I had an after-work drink with my workmates last night to farewell a contractor who worked with us during Vivid Sydney. We went to Hart’s Pub in The Rock’s, which is just a few blocks away from the office. I have walked past it many times and never properly noticed the craft brewery, which is... Continue Reading →

I've decided that spending a few hours with DD twice a week isn't enough. So I am going to work from his place one day each week. I did a test run yesterday and it was lovely. On Sunday afternoon we read the papers together, watched a few travel videos on YouTube and went to... Continue Reading →