Wednesday, Jul 04, 2012
Anniversary
Today is a special anniversary. More years ago than we care to remember, Sue and I were married.
The meal was a leek and goats’ cheese tart, with fennel-based salad.
Accompanied with a bottle of Arras Grand Vintage sparkling wine.
Dessert was an orange-and-rhubarb pannacotta.
Suberb.
Saturday, Apr 21, 2012
Terrigal
We have just been away to Terrigal for a few days.
Andrew and Nick are on school holidays and I (David) took a week off work. Sue still had to go in to work (a slow-burning dispute made this politically wise to do), so it wasn’t really a complete family holiday, although Sue came up every night – Terrigal is on the coast north of Sydney, and in driving-time terms is only about as far away from where Sue works as is our home in Mt Riverview!
The weather was poor – it rained for much of the time, so we played quite a lot of board games. In particular “Agricola” a game sent to us by (Uncle) Mark last Christmas, at which excels. Actually is pretty good at most boardgames. He quietly calculates what the best strategy is and gets on with it.
Agricola is a good game in that there is little conflict (at least that is true for the way that we play it) as everyone builds up their farm, propagating corn, husbanding sheep, cattle and wild boar (!), and building the family farmhouse. I cannot imagine anyone less like a farmer than, but he wins every time!
Nick and I drove to Terrigal via Wiseman’s Ferry, through the valleys of the Hawkesbury river and it tributaries. A beautiful drive.
We now have a third driver in the family. Nick is learning to drive. In Australia you can have your L-plates from your sixteenth birthday, but cannot take the driving test until you have had your “Ls” for a year, and done 120 hours of driving (including 20 hours of night-time). After the test you are still on “P-plates” for another two years. I think that it is a good system. Nick has done >50 hours already, and is driving well.
Thursday, Apr 05, 2012
This is what life should be like …
and Nick sailing on Sydney harbour last weekend….. and just in case you didn’t recognise the harbour:
Complete with Opera House, a Manly ferry, etc.
They had been doing a sailing course at the Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron over the past eight months or so, and this was the final day.
I think that they have had a good time, although getting out of bed every Sunday at 6-30 am has been a bit of a challenge.
I would love to have done this, as a boy.
Monday, Mar 26, 2012
High Res. – click to enlarge
Garratt at work
My Garratt is working.
You can tell from its rusty and dirty appearance.
High Res. – click to enlarge
It has even got its own driver now.
Sunday, Mar 18, 2012
The Garratt, again
My 0-4-0+0+4-0 Garratt is nearly finished: look!
Factory finish – it looks beautiful, if not realistic!
It doesn’t have the cab roof in place, or a crew inside, but other than that it’s looking good ….
The “bow” pen arrived this week, (specially imported from Haff pens in Germany!) so I could at last do the lining – red and white lines, which “bring out” the shapes of the bunker and water tank, and certainly improves the overall appearance. Two pictures at High Resolution (Click on the picture to enlarge it):
However I will now be going to “weather” the locomotive. I haven’t yet seen a picture of the actual loco. that didn’t show it seriously dirty and covered in coal dust, etc. I’m going for realism (and it covers some of the mistakes that I have made!).All to be published in the Scale Seven magazine ….
Saturday, Mar 03, 2012
Cricket, etc
It has been amazingly wet here recently.
I’m sitting at home whilst I should be watching our Ninth Grade side in their Grand Final: the ground was almost flooded. We have had so much rain that the Nepean river is flooded. Nick and Andrew’s school was closed on Friday and will probably be closed on Monday. The school itself doesn’t get flooded, but access roads have standing water, and teachers or pupils living on the far side of the Nepean/Hawkesbury River simply cannot get to school.
Nick was due to be in two Grand Finals today, and neither will take place. It’s unlikely that even tomorrow conditions will be good enough to play.
The semi-finals were both great to watch. From a parents point of view the Under 16 Div1 final was perfect. Facing 138 to win, on a sodden field where runs were very hard to get, the opening pair made about 85 off 45 overs (out of 60). Then two wickets fell in quick succession, and the task was just looking as though it might prove to be quite tricky.
Nick goes in at Number 4, and announces his arrival by hitting their best bowler for three (no stroke had earned more than two runs in the first 45 overs!), and immediately increased the run-rate to about 5 per over. He hit the winning runs with plenty of overs to spare. Just the innings that his side needed, and wonderful to watch as he systematically demolished the opposition attack. The ninth Grade Semi-Final was exciting and very different. Played on a sodden pitch with long grass, scores were low. GBCC Ninth Grade were all out for 127 off 77 overs. At the end of the first day they had the opposition at 4/15 off ten overs. By a few overs into the second day, two more wickets had fallen, but after that no more for too long ….
At 6/115 we looked lost.
However Big Willie (centre of the front row in the picture) never gave up, rallied the troops, and they were all out for 122.
This was not a match for the Coulsheds to “write home” about (” ‘blog proudly”?). David was on the sidelines, and Nick scored a duck and bowled only one over because of his very sore shoulder. However it was a great match to watch.
We might reach the dizzy heights of Eighth Grade next year – or will we form another Ninth Grade side with some new hopeless recruits?
Sunday, Feb 19, 2012
Skiing again
These are the finalized pictures from Nick’s collection.
Nick skiing jumping
Sue and Nick in cable-car bubble
Friday, Jan 13, 2012
Skiing 2
Update on Hakuba.
This is our last day, and I have actually finished, although the two boys remain on the slopes. My knee has held out over the week and I certainly do not want to push things too far.
The whole resort is good – Hakuba-One, Hakuba 47, Goryu, Iwatake and Cortina (although why anyone would want to name a skifield after a very in distinguished car, I don’t know!
The weather has continues to be good – enough snowfall, but plenty of sunshine. No crowds!!! We have never had to wait more than a few seconds for a lift, and although the conditions are great, very few pele seem to be taking advantage of it.
The hotel has been excellent, about 100m to walk to the nearest lift. We’ve eaten a variety of Japanese food, much of it excellent also. Our day “off” skiing was spent going to see the snow- monkeys (macaques who have learned to keep warm in winter by using the hot springs!) and the biggest Buddhist temple in Japan.
So overall a great holiday so far.
Tuesday, Jan 10, 2012
Japan skiing
The Australian Coulsheds are currently in Japan, skiing in Hakuba. A year ago our trip to Niseko was almost the first thing that went on this website. So a year later here we are again. Well not quite: Hakuba is a lot further south. One of it’s attractions is that it is only a 90-minute Shinkansen ride from Tokyo station (plus an hour’s bus ride to the hotel), instead of a flight to Sapporo then a three-hour bus ride to Niseko from the airport.Hakuba is much less Australian, which may seem an odd thing to say, but not after you have experienced the wall-to-wall Aussies in Niseko! It’s also much less cold, and the sunshine is welcome. We’ve had good weather here and excellent snow. I (David) have had to greatly restrict what skiing that I can do, because of my recent leg injury and then more recent surgery. However by just doing a small amount, only on very smooth slopes, and concentrating on the best technique that I am capable of, I have been able to avoid any worsening of my knee problems (I think). What has been even more amazing is that after the new year holiday period was over (5th Jan) almost everyone seemed to leave, and the slopes have been almost deserted. Ski lifts almost to ourselves. Absolutely no wait for cable-cars. Pistes completely empty in front of us. No ice. Fresh snow.
We’ll happily come here again!
So, here we are.
David Skiing
Sue skiing
Nick snowboarding