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New old theme?
I’ve changed to a theme I’m pretty sure I used before. I’m still unsettled as to how I want the blog to look but this works for me now.
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Good
Today was the beginning of another hot spike in temperatures for us. I think it got to 35 C today where we live. At least that’s what the car thermometer said. I had to take the dogs to the vet for vaccinations and a couple other issues and that started at 4pm. We got in rather late due to some emergencies that took priority. It was okay aside from the nuisance the dogs were making of themselves. We finished up just around 5pm and I came home. As it was warm and I was in the right mood, I went out for a bike ride soon afterwards.
It was still kind of hot, so I took two bottles of water with me and put one in my backpack just in case. I got started easily enough and got out onto the bike paths near us. I found today was an easy ride. My heart rate was on the higher side but it wasn’t making me feel ill so I didn’t take any drastic measures to change it. I kept a steady pace all the way to my destination and didn’t struggle all that much with the hills tonight although it was a definite workout.
Once I arrived I parked my bike and went into the shopping center for a few minutes break. I had a banana I’d taken with me so had a bit of a snack and then made sure to drink all the water in one of the bottles. I hadn’t stopped at all along the way. Then I went to refill the water before setting off again. Unfortunately this took long enough that it was just about sunset by the time I got going again. I wasn’t too fussed as it still felt pleasant outside and the bike path is well lit until I get to my neighborhood (where it’s lit but not as well). It did serve as a reminder that I need to get a light installed.
The ride back was even better than the ride there. It was such easy exercise that I didn’t feel as though I was working all that hard. It’s really interesting how that happens some days and then others just the simplest ride can be so hard to get through. The temperature had dropped a bit once the sun set and I found myself riding through pockets of cooler air. But as I got closer to home there were pockets of warmer air that I was hitting. I did stop briefly to take a photo of the pretty night skies fairly early on in the ride back.
Pretty sky during ride home When I got home I was feeling pretty good. I think this sort of exercise releases those endorphins and I felt like they were really flowing tonight. Even hours later I’m still feeling pretty good.
Tomorrow is supposed to be a scorcher with possible high temperatures that we don’t get in November ever. Just another tick in the evidence of climate change, methinks.
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So tired…
of looking at my Facebook feed and seeing some of the obnoxious posts by family members and friends. Curiously I see this mostly from Trump supporters. I so want to post something about this but haven’t worked out how to word something to be effective without being nasty.
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Halloween
I don’t think I’ve ever written about Halloween before since it’s mostly a non-event here. Well it used to be a non-event but now it’s become somewhat more popular around here.
Growing up, I enjoyed Halloween as a child and I remember going trick or treating in our neighborhood every year. I even recall a house that was on a little cul-de-sac off our street that never gave out treats and was dark each year. It’s a rather indistinct memory in that I mostly recall it happening and kind of where it happened but almost no other detail.
My trick or treating days were over by the time we moved from Georgia to North Carolina when I was eleven. I really can’t recall exactly when that was but I’m sure if I went out it was only because my brothers did. I didn’t really do much for Halloween during my teens and college years. I did dress up for at least one party which I think was held in our dorm. Once I was working I often was often at work on the night.
Then we had our two boys and Halloween wasn’t a part of their lives. Except for the one year we were in Halifax, Nova Scotia when they did their one and only trick or treating experience. I found they really got into the whole event there, unlike where we’d live before we left the US. (I think it had changed to mostly parties around our area, even for kids). The Scientist took them out while I stayed home to hand out treats. Of course Lego Lover doesn’t recall that as he was only not-quite three at the time. Not sure if Games Fanatic recalls much of it either but he was old enough to remember something of it, I think.
These days, Halloween has become more popular here and they even sell the type of pumpkins we used to use for jack o’lanterns although it’s pretty expensive to buy. I think that was the part I liked the best of the day but I’d sooner use some other foodstuff which was cheaper. After all the original ones were made out of turnips and beets from what I have read. I’m not sure how well that might work though and it’s a bit more than I can be bothered with in the end. I did today see the first jack o’lanterns I’ve ever seen in Australia. I know they must have been done before since the pumpkins are sold here but just never saw one. The one I recall was at an Anglican church having some sort of Halloween Haven. I have no idea what that entailed but I can guess it might be like the events I recall from when I last lived in North Carolina where kids were taken to a community event to do trick or treating instead of going door to door.
Today wasn’t the ideal evening for going out because it’s been windy and rainy off and on. We didn’t get anybody knocking at our door but then I didn’t prepare for anyone to come aside from getting an emergency pack of little chocolates…one of which has mostly been consumed by family members now. The other is still unopened. I did get other chocolates for the boys to eat and they are mostly gone now aside from part of a Toblerone block.
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More bike riding
I’ve managed a few more bike rides lately and found the cycle pathways are now pretty extensive around here. My rides have been focused on the new section of highway but I decided to check how far the path went in the opposite direction. I didn’t know if it had been extended very far because last time I tried to go that way months ago, there was an abrupt end just past Malaga (neighboring suburb). Well, now the pathway goes on quite a distance. I don’t know exactly how far but once I managed to get almost as far as where my client that I support as a carer lives. I think I can get there but just made a slightly wrong turn along the way and ended up coming back closer to home. I eventually used a map app to find my way back to the highway to get home and it was fine.
This week I went riding for what I intended to be a much shorter ride. I started late due to a delay caused by forgetting something at the store. So my time was limited before it got dark. Anyway, I started out and just past the ramp onto the highway, I noticed a few cars along the side of the road and a few people climbing the hill and doing something. I thought maybe people were getting together to do something on the fly. I don’t know what but it was an odd thing to see. As I rode closer to my turning around point, I saw fire vehicles and then ambulances coming from the direction I was heading. I just knew it was related to what I saw and when I did get back there, a whole bunch of emergency vehicles were there and something was happening up on the hill and a vehicle was blocking the pathway. I still don’t know quite what happened there as no news stories have appeared. I did see some sort of pop up tent sort of thing when I passed by the first time but nothing has appeared to explain it even though it blocked traffic quite a bit at the time.
The next day I went riding back in the same direction and the tent thing was gone and I realised there was a broken fence there now. I don’t recall it being broken before but maybe it was. I wonder if a vehicle went off the road and up the hill…it’s a long way off the road though, so that doesn’t really answer my questions. Hopefully I will find out more in the next few days in the community paper or somewhere similar.
Anyway, that next bike ride turned out to be my longest ever ride. I went into Ellenbrook and stopped at the shopping center to get a drink or two. It was a warm day but I wasn’t overly hot, just a bit dehydrated. I did have my water bottle but wanted to save that for the return trip. I got a couple drinks and took one with me in my backpack/purse and still had most of my water. I went back out and rode a bit further from home before turning around. This was a big mistake because my left knee started hurting and there was considerable uphill riding. My newish bike is good with hills and has more gears than my old one but it was still hard-going and I wish I hadn’t gone any further out. I mainly was hoping to get a good view of the hills out that way but it didn’t quite work in my favor that time. The lighting just wasn’t right. I was relying more on my right leg to pedal but it wasn’t enough to take pressure off the left knee. The ride back too heaps more time than it should have and I ended up getting off the bike and walking up the last hill towards the overpass of the new roads because I just couldn’t pedal any harder. Once to the top there it was a fairly easy ride and I just had to deal with a slightly darker area once off the main pathways. It’s not dark exactly just not as well lit as the pathway was. That only lasted a few minutes as the distance to our house from there is only a kilometer.
Anyway, I’m looking forward to further exploration of the local bike paths and hopefully finding a way into Perth. I think it’s quite possible for me to get into the city within an hour given the right pathway. The way I’d tried before has always been slow going due stoplights and less convenient paths so these new ones might make it a much better journey.
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Good ride
It’s amazing how conditions make such a difference on a bike ride. When I went out a couple weeks ago and tried to ride on a warm day, I found it too hot and I quickly became dehydrated and pretty much limped my way home. It was warm yesterday but nowhere near hot and I waited until later in the day to ride. I did the ride to the end of the current highway and decided to see how far the pathway continued. Unlike the highway, the bike/pedestrian path continues about three kilometers beyond the exit. It was a really good ride although my bottom was pretty sore by the time I got home. It was about twelve kilometers each way and I didn’t even finish my water bottle this time. It got pretty chilly on the way back and I’m glad I had my jacket with me even though I never took enough time to put it on. It was kind of on the edge of being cold so I just went with the flow and it worked out pretty well. I am also happy to note I didn’t get too much numbness in my right hand this time. It all went well and I got close to home just in time for sunset.
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New toy
I think I posted a while back that my plan was to get a new phone this year. In past years, I’ve always gone for the year old models but this year my plan was to buy the latest model. I waited, sometimes patiently, for Apple to announce their new phones. There really weren’t many secrets on it since almost everything had been leaked ahead of time.
My resolve was to get a new phone with these new releases but when the time came I started wavering a bit. Part of me thought maybe I should stick it out another year and wait for the next models. Apple is likely to release 5G phones and a few other changes are expected to fall more in line with other similarly priced phones. I even considered getting the low-end model this time but then there were concerns about the resolution which is actually worse than my old phone.
On Friday, I had to take Lego Lover to an appointment in West Perth so we walked into the city proper and met the Scientist for lunch. After eating we walked across the street to the Apple store. We’d been watching it while eating outside and the lines weren’t a big deal at this point. Lego Lover wouldn’t go into the store so the Scientist waited with him outside while I went into check out the new models. It was crowded but honestly not really much worse than usual. They had several tables with the phones displayed so I checked out the low end model and it fit in my hand nicely. But I knew from early on the screen just wasn’t going to do it. It just looked rather flat. I went on to look at the Pro model and it was lovely but it was kind of small. When I was younger this wouldn’t have been an issue but my eyes like the larger screens now. I tried out the Pro Max and it felt similar to my old phone. It was kind of a no-brainer and I went back outside to the lines to put in my order. That led me back inside to wait for the next available Apple person to assist me. It was all stream-lined and went pretty smoothly. They had older model phones off to the side to try out. I was met by a few store people who were just almost over-the-top gung ho about the new phones. Before I knew it, I was at the front and was being assisted and then I had this fancy black box in my bag and was walking out. It didn’t take too long at all.
We had a few other things to do then we came home by bus and once I was settled in at home, I opened my new box. This just reminded me there are people who unbox new items on Youtube, which I find kind of hilarious. I could have had my new phone set up in store but I am quite okay to do it myself. Once I plugged it in, it was smooth sailing. I will say the process is really easy these days if you have another Apple product. It just gets the information and transfers it over. It then was able to transfer my files from my old phone. The biggest time waiting was for all my apps to download and even that goes quicker now we have the faster NBN access that goes at higher speeds.
I ordered a case online that night and the next day I ended up buying another one to use in the meantime. This is the down side of buying brand new because in the past I was able to get a cheap case easily. I spent more than I normally would have but also got a protective film put on. I spent far less for the case this time than last even though it’s the same company (Spigen) that makes it.
As for the phone to use, it’s been a dream so far. I’m still getting used to the slight differences to the screen but it’s all been pretty good. I finally tried out the fancy camera yesterday and it was brilliant to use. I’m amazed at the quality of the images shown and will definitely be making more use of this camera.
The other cool thing is I can use the Qi charger that the Scientist uses for his Samsung phone.
I will add that the guy that helped me in store also mentioned an update to the WatchOs and I updated it on Saturday. There’s now a noise level sensor you can turn on to see how loud it is where you are. It can remain on all the time but I don’t really see much point of it and turned it off that night. It’s kind of neat but I find it kind of a weird addition to go on about like the Apple store dude did. :D
With the phone camera I took a new photo of the Scientist and now have it as my watch face. It came out really well. :)
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Dwindling family
Both my father’s parents were one of multiple children. I’m talking about over ten in each family. So there’s a lot of family around that I don’t know and probably never will know. I think I’ve run across a few through the DNA testing sites.
My mom’s father was an only child although she had a step-father who was also from a large family. My maternal grandmother was the oldest of nine children. There were five girls and four boys. The youngest two are actually younger than my mom and the third youngest is only slightly older. You could say they grew up more like siblings their true relationship. My mom even lived in the same house for a period of time growing up.
Less than two years ago, the youngest, my aunt E, was diagnosed with lung cancer. Like most of this part of the family she’d smoked all her adult life and I don’t know that she’d quit like some family members or not. Anyway, her prognosis initially wasn’t good but then she saw a different doctor who did surgery. Apparently that made things a lot better and she was doing okay. But then she ended up rushed to the hospital in massive pain and it turns out the cancer had spread throughout her body. The outlook was was poor but there was a plan to start her on chemotherapy. Then she decided she wasn’t going to go down that path. It makes no difference because she died soon afterwards on September 7th, just three days before her 75th birthday.
Out of that family of nine kids, she was one of the ones I was closest to. She lived across the road from my grandma until my grandmother moved into an apartment. I last saw her on my November 2017 trip and we had a good visit one afternoon. I’m grateful I was able to spend that time with her. For my mom’s part, it’s much like losing a sister. In fact she was closer to her aunt than she was her sisters (who were ten and fifteen years younger). I am glad she didn’t suffer a long time but it really is sad that I will never see her again. Instead I will keep my memories of her close.
This brings that part of the family down to two brothers and one sister still living. The sister is also another close relationship and this is made harder by the fact she is suffering from Alzheimer’s and is living in the nursing home where my other aunt spent her last days. It’s weird to think of this family passing out of existence but it won’t be too long until it happens.
Not to mention that my parents are no longer young. With both in the latter 70s it’s possible they could be struck down by any number of ailments. At the moment, though, they are both in relatively decent health, which is a relief to me.
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Bicycle, post-op
Last week I went on my first bike ride since surgery. Actually it’s my first ride in months since I wasn’t able ride with the numbness before the surgery. All in all, it went really well for my first trip out. It was a bit windy but otherwise was a nice day and it worked well for taking a bit of a chance at some good exercise. I did put some plasters over the heel of my hand to protect from friction as it still feels a bit weird to use it. I don’t think I really needed them but it gave me some peace of mind. The ride itself was only about twenty minutes each way. I stopped at the local electronics/computer shops to browse for a break and then came home afterwards. I was enjoying myself so much that I almost went riding longer but opted to play it safe this time. Also my tire wasn’t aired up quite enough so I was concerned about tire issues. I made it back with no problems and had a decent amount of exercise. It’s either rained or been forecast the last few days so I haven’t tried again but plan to ride again on the weekend when it warms up again.
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Fleetwood Mac
Last year it was announced that Lindsey Buckingham had been fired from Fleetwood Mac and that Mike Campbell (of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers) and Neil Finn (one of my musical heroes) were taking his place in the band. I will admit I was stunned and really couldn’t imagine this scenario. It just seemed a bit too weird to think of Neil, one of my favorites, playing as part of FM, a favorite band of mine going back for several years. There was quite a furor in the media at the time and people were very much divided. I didn’t think too much more on it at the time but did start hearing reviews of shows once the tour began. Surprisingly, there was a hugely positive response at the time. It now was a matter of if and when the shows might reach Australia.
In January the announcement did come and when tickets went on sale I was a bit torn about whether to get tickets or not. In the end I decided to go for it and went online to purchase. Initially I had found tickets in the first block but had some technical issues when trying to make a purchase and so ended up with seats in the next section back. This was still quite a reasonable view so I can’t complain.
Months passed and my mind had the idea the show was mid-late August so was taken by surprise when I discovered the show was on the 9th. The Scientist and I had intended to go see a friend playing with her band in a local venue that night. I made my apologies and my friend was quite forgiving and said if she had tickets she’d be missing her show too. She’d been to see FM a couple years back in the rain and loved the show despite being left with a nasty cold afterwards. That show had the classic lineup which we haven’t seen before. The Scientist and I saw them on the Behind the Mask tour when Rick Vito and Billy Burnette were in place of Lindsey.
Friday arrived and the Scientist decided to work from home so he could get ready sooner. We made the unprecedented decision to take public transport to the show, partly due to it being included in the ticket price and partly to avoid driving in and the exorbitant parking fees. Anyway, we got ready and left a bit early to walk to the bus stop. We were first to board, having walked to the terminus. Once in town, we walked to the venue, which was a short distance from the bus terminal. Our plan was to get a bite to eat at Pita Pit, a local favorite eatery that had announced their presence. We discovered three food trucks on-site so had a look at the fare for the other two. When we arrived at Pita Pit, a worker that we know from our local store approached us and gave us discount coupons. That kind of decided us and we managed to get our two meals plus potato wedges for a mere $14.
After eating we walked across the side street to the venue and ventured in. Over the loudspeaker there was an ongoing announcement being broadcast in an annoying gee whiz kind of voice about getting into the venue. I can’t recall what it was but we heard it while eating and then while waiting to get inside and it was highly annoying. Once inside we went in search of water fountains to fill our water bottles. It’s not often we’ve been able to enter an arena with our own so it was good to take advantage. It took a while to find them but they seemed kind of obvious once we did. Then we went inside the arena and were ushered personally to our row since the crowds were still pretty limited.
The show was set to start at 8pm and there were still a lot of empty seats even ten minutes before that. I guess most people just assume the start will be late and act accordingly. Or they were all hanging around the bars getting drinks and didn’t care if they were late to the show. The start time rolled around and people were still flooding in. I should add there was no support act for this show, something we both found rather unusual. The lights finally went down at a quarter past and the band were soon onstage to a roar as Mick Fleetwood entered the stage and took his place at the drum kit.
Soon they launched into The Chain and it was a good start. I’m so used to the original lineup with this song that it didn’t seem possible it would be as good. But it really was well done. After the song finished, Stevie spoke up and told us this was the 63rd show of the tour. And of course it was the first for Australia. The band launched into Little Lies with Christine McVie singing lead vocals. Her voice sounded a bit rough for this one, which was a surprise since it’s been Stevie’s voice that has been a bit off in recent years. Still it was a good performance overall.
Next up is Dreams and we’re into the stuff that made up the heart of my love of Fleetwood Mac all those years ago. Stevie is in her element on vocals and the tambourine and the evening is heading into the magical realm at this point. Then we have Second Hand News and this is where I find Neil Finn makes it seem real to me. I am just so used to Buckingham vocals on this but Neil honestly did a really good job on this.
I can’t recall all of the songs played but the next of note is their new version of Black Magic Woman, with Stevie on lead vocals. This was my highlight of the night with all performing so well and the audience was very appreciative.
Suddenly we’re onto a Neil Finn creation with the song, I Got You from his days in Split Enz. I will point out that band was huge in Australia, making Neil and his brother Tim rather honorary Aussies as opposed to Kiwis from across the pond. I came to hear this song long after its heyday but it’s a big staple in the Neil Finn catalogue and the crowd loved it. Everyone was on their feet and it was reminiscent of seeing Split Enz in the frigid Burswood Dome in winter 2006 and everyone was up and dancing. You’d have thought the crowd was there for Neil on this song.
Moving on we get to Rhiannon which is another magical performance. And next we move on to World Turning which was a big Lindsey song. But with Neil and Christine on lead vocals, it was amazing and this led into a long drum solo by Mick Fleetwood, and eventually onto more amazing drumming with the addition of Taku Hirana on drums beside him. It was another highlight of the show before other members of the band gradually returned to the stage to finish up.
After this Mick comes to the front of the stage to make proper introductions of the band. There are cheers for the additional players on stage. One of the greatest cheers comes for Neil, which is amazing seeing he is the youngest and latest to join the band. But it’s like he’s the hero of the night and he looks so happy to be there. Just like a kid at times. The biggest roar comes for Stevie a bit later, which is fitting since she is the often the leading star of the show for the band.
A bit later in the show, the song Oh Well is played. This is another throwback to the early FM and Mike Campbell takes the on the vocals and gives another amazing performance. It’s truly rocking blues number that evokes the late ’60s era from which it originated.
We get Gypsy and Landslide from Stevie and then You Make Loving Fun and Hold Me from Christine. Another fabulous performance of Gold Dust Woman by Stevie, a dark and riveting number that kind of feels like black magic…
In the midst of all these lovely songs is Don’t Dream it’s Over with Neil and Stevie sharing vocals and the local crowd just erupts. The love for Neil and this “Aussie” classic is palpable. Plus there’s the awesome sing-along of the crowd with band during the chorus.
The set finishes with Don’t Stop, which brings the house down and the band leave the stage for a time. When they return the screen behind the band shows images of Tom Petty as they go into the Free Fallin’ with Stevie taking on the vocals. The feeling in the crowd is of sadness but admiration for the close friend of two of the band members.
Finally, the band plays it’s finale of Don’t Stop and the crowd is roaring and on its feet. Well at least up where we are they are standing and joining in the song. It’s a fitting end to the show and it kind of leaves you with the feeling of hope for the future.
The band lingers on stage for a while and Neil takes many bows as he moves across the stage. Again, he’s having a wonderful time and I can’t help feeling it’s a bit like a homecoming for him to be back in Australia with a “new” band. Stevie also moves as though a queen and pays respect to the crowd from various parts of the stage. Finally it’s just Mick Fleetwood who leaves with heartfelt words to say for us to be safe on our return home and to be good to one another.
The lights come up and we wait for a while as the crowd pours out the exits. I figure it might be awhile until we get out but things move along quickly and soon we are heading back to the bus terminal. It’s a pleasant night and if not for a bit of rush to catch our bus, I’d have liked to have hung out a bit along the way. In the end it wasn’t the rush we thought it was but at that point it felt better just to get where we needed. We thought initially we’d have missed the 11pm bus but we arrived with plenty of time, which is good since it would have been a hugely late night for the Scientist.
Surprisingly I felt really tired when we got home and went to bed kind of early, which is quite different to usual when the buzz of the night keeps me going for long time after I’m home.
All in all it was a wonderful night that will long be remembered.
