2010-02-06 - 9:11 a.m.

Yeah I know I promised certain people that I'd update at least once a month, and I know I haven't updated since November- but I also haven't DJed since November and my setlists were a good excuse to post in here. I will be back at the Sly Fox next week however, in honour of Mark's birthday (well, that's why I begged Kitty to be included in the lineup this month).

Christmas has come and gone. I can't remember the last time we had a relaxing weekend, though this one is starting off that way (inexplicably up at 9am in the hope of getting the most out of the weekend). We had everybody around for Christmas, as planned. "Everybody" was my parents, Jo's parents, my brother & sister and their respective partners, and Jo's brothers and their respective partners. Dragging presents from my parents' car into our loungeroom was a comical affair- the corner of our room looked about as cluttered with presents as it did when we had our wedding presents delivered (although that time they were all for us).

The food was crazy. Jo made a turkey, and a glazed ham (well she prepared it and I cooked it to perfection on the BBQ). I made a biryani which I was slightly disappointed with (the meat was fine but the rice was overcooked and a bit bland), Dad made a fantastic korma (or kurma as it is called where the Indian part of my family is from) and a Christmas Cake, Mum made ginger pickles and mint pickles and Ice Cream Christmas pudding, Jo made a boiled pudding which lasted about a month after Christmas, there were fruit mince tarts and gingerbread cookies and I ended up so full I almost couldn't move. It was a little windy and rainy by late afternoon, so we hastily moved from the balcony (which is the only place 14 people were going to fit to eat lunch) back into the loungeroom for the present opening which took about 2 hours in itself.

At about 8pm we hitched a ride with Jo's Dad to Londonderry (out near Richmond) where Jo's Gran lives, and caught up with her Mum's extended family. Stayed at her Dad's place in Blacktown and then had her Dad's extended family thing in Beecroft on Boxing Day. And then hurriedly packed for Hervey Bay the next day.

I don't see my Grandparents often, as they live in sub-tropical Queensland, and being older and less mobile now they don't get down to see us either, but they are amazing people. At 85 and 83 they still act like a young couple in love at times, and given that I don't see them often I'm in no way sick of the stories of growing up in the thirties and life during WWII, or about hearing about my Mum and her siblings when they were children. It's possible that I won't get another chance to see them, but on the other hand we may all find ourselves up there in 4 or so years for my Grandpa's 90th.

The 4 nights up there were relaxing- it was great having nothing to do. Jo and I took a day trip to Fraser Island which was pretty much just as I remembered it (and I was glad Jo liked it).

We got back into Sydney at about 3pm on New Year's Eve- and had to quickly get ready for the Grates at the Manning Bar. To be honest, my favourite part of the night was drinking cocktails at the Marly beforehand with Jo, Lucy, Phillipa and Richard (before ducking across the road to buy a drink each for the walk to Manning Bar like a bunch of teenagers). The Grates were great as usual, the Baddies were good (tee hee), as were the Red Riders, but I don't think I'll be spending New Year's Eve 10/11 in a sweaty venue full of 18 year olds. We didn't stick around long after the Grates, and wandered back into the Marly in time to hear a cover band knocking out renditions of "Summer of '69" and "Smells Like Teen Spirit" (lamentably their last two songs of the night), and we were home in bed by 3am. And then there was good old New Year's Morning-ish Yum Cha (I'll never forget walking out of our apartment to 43 degree heat on New Year's Day in '06 and sitting down for hot Chinese Tea at Yum Cha).

All up I had 11 days off between Christmas Eve and the first week of January, and it wasn't nearly enough.

�

previous - next

�