April, 2020 Mum & Dad’s place, Qld

1^st – April Fools Day – didn’t catch anyone out. Walked down to the newsagent to buy a paper for Mum and Dad as it wasn’t delivered. Nice walk, shall try and do this regularly now I am not working. I took Mum and Dad to their doctor’s surgery for their flu injections. Because of CoVid19 the nurses came out to the car and gave them their injections through the window so they didn’t have to go inside. Great service.

Rose of Sharon in the morning then after lunch when it starts to close up. Each flower only last for 12 hours or so.

Mum and Dad Sunbird have started on a nest in the carport.

2^nd – 57 today – which is good as I was thinking I was turning 58!! Steve bought me the best card yet and some scratchies which I won $30 from – shame I can’t go shopping at this weird house bound time of CoVid19. Mum and Dad gave me a beautiful card and money.

I received lots of lovely messages via text and Facebook and some lovely phone calls as well. Steve took a photo of me with my namesake – The Rose of Sharon. Aah the wrinkles – I don’t think I will update my Facebook photo with this one. I like the 40 year old look better!

Kerri sent me photos of our 1982 trip to New Zealand where we met on a Newman’s bus tour that I did as my Miss Cairns prize. It was a wonderful gift and brought back lots of memories.

3^rd – I managed to buy some toilet paper today from the Chemist, the first lot I have been able to get since the crazy bulk buyers bought up all the toilet paper.

4^th – So lovely watching all the butterflies flittering about from flower to flower around the house. There are so many different ones but the green Cairns Birdwing and Ulysses (Blue Mountain) are the best. The black cockatoos are squawking a lot high above us whereas the white cockatoos are on the ground eating the nuts off the almond tree by the road. Mum and Dad Sunbird have started a new nest near Mum’s car so will be fun watching them create it. The obviously weren’t happy with their first attempt.

Steve moved the truck to Jon’s as Rick is having problems with his tenant and we don’t want to be the cause of them leaving especially in this economic climate created by the CoVid Pandemic.

Jon has met a lovely lady, Annalise, who is a nurse at the Fertility Clinic. Dan and Fran are still going ok.

8^th – I got $750 stimulus payment (due to the CoVid Pandemic) because I am on the Carer Pension. We will use it for the bits and pieces Steve needs for the new truck.

Steve got the plates to down the side of the truck for the tray to go on. After he got them in place Pete came over and welded them on. 

I am having an interesting time looking up more family history on the Geck side as David has access to Ancestry.com for a while.

9^th – Steve painted the chassis rails ready to put the tray on.

10^th – Steve put the tray on – looking good.

 

11^th – The sunbirds nest is coming along. 

Dad’s orchid is putting on a lovely display.

13^th - Sent off photos of ‘Smokey’s latest developments to the certifier in Townsville after he put on the side tie down rails – still needs to bend them around the fuel filler.

Met Kaylene for a walk again at Rock Pool and along Freshwater Creek. Remembered to take some photos this time.

15^th – Started the jigsaw Kaylene gave me – looks challenging with some many colour changes.

17^th – Met the girls at Tuckshop to discuss whether we open up next week when ‘limited’ schooling starts on Monday. As they didn’t get too many students at the end of last term it was decided to see how the first week went. All the girls will get the payment from the government from the JobKeeper program created to keep people employed till we can all resume normal work once this virus settles down. I don’t qualify as a casual has to have worked for 12 months with that employer to get paid.

Jenny told me that my high school friend, Bronwyn, suddenly passed away yesterday. She worked with Valerie too. Such sad news for her mother and her family.

Valerie back in quarantine as one of the Pathology staff she works with has tested positive to CoVid19 so they are testing everyone and sent them all home to wait to see if they develop anything.

18^th - Daniel folded up the mudguards and brackets for the tail lights then he and Steve made the head frame. Steve brought ‘Smokey’ home as it is all done for now until he can get it to Townsville to be certified.

I rang the Police to see if we can get a permit to drive down but they said it would have to come from Qld Health Dept as they are calling the shots due to the CoVid Pandemic. After chatting with a lovely health dept lady we worked out it wouldn’t be worth the risk as the ‘law’ states that all travel to be only for ‘essential’ reasons, like shopping, exercise or visiting vulnerable family so the truck doesn’t come under that and I am not willing to risk a $1300 fine to try. We will go down when they open the roads again – one day.

19^th – Steve went fishing with Pete and Smurf after lunch into the night.

I noticed a Facebook page about school photos where people were asking if anyone had class photos from Trinity Bay. As I have all the ones I scanned and the yearbooks from when I helped organised the 50^th Anniversary for Trinity Bay High School I posted up a comment. Immediately I got a heap of requests for photos – that will keep me busy for a while.

20^th – Steve got home at 2am and they had an ok time. About 15 good fish which is nice but not for the hours they were out there. Mum is very happy to have fresh fish of course.

21^st – The last blooms have fallen off the Rose of Sharon. Time to cut it back ready for next year – or October if it does the same as last year when I was home.

This jigsaw has certainly been challenging. I am mainly doing it be the piece size rather than colours. Amazingly the black and white areas have been easy – the red rocks and horses will be ‘fun’.

23^rd – Susan’s 60^th birthday. As we can’t get together to celebrate Steve and I drove over to drop off her present and card. The law says people can have two visitors per household so we went in for a while – keeping our social 1.5m distance of course. No hugging now-a-days. They had picked up their new van which is now a garden ornament out the front of the house since no one can travel at the moment. They are very happy with it which is great. We drove out to Kaylene and Rick’s for a cuppa as they are the only ones we have actually spent time with since the socialising rules came in.

24^th – A huge spider has decided to make himself at home by the van. I had just cleared off all the little spiders making use of the dry areas under the windows but this guy was too big for me so I left Stephen to deal with his relocation.

Russell sent me the link to watch Bronwyn’s funeral service. My internet wasn’t too good but what I saw as lovely. Feeling for her family as she hadn’t quite reached her 57^th birthday. I had run Debbie to let her know too.

Valerie is fine – no CoVid19 which is great. She can go back to work next Tuesday.

Fran sent a photo of the sanded and varnished timber floor in the spare bedroom. Daniel has been hard at work painting the room and sanding the floor to make a gym room for Fran.

25^th – Anzac Day. No public services etc but there is heaps of things on the TV to watch.

Mummy Sunbird is trying out her new nest. Not a good spot as we walk past it all the time and she flies out.

26^th – My jigsaw is coming along.

Greg cooked us spaghetti bol for dinner then we played cards. They all won a couple of games except me!

Fran sent photos of the completed ‘gym’ room Daniel has created at his place for her. He did a wonderful job on striping and sanding the floor – lovely timber.

27^th – Took Mum and Dad for a drive to Holloways Beach picking up some Maccas on the way (remembered why we don’t buy Maccas). Very windy so we stayed in the car and watched the waves roll in and a big ship out to sea.

28^th – Jonathon’s 27^th birthday. Rang him to wish him a lovely birthday, he was hard at work.  Annalise is cooking him dinner tonight which is lovely. We will have his birthday celebration tomorrow night here.

I finished my 1000 piece jigsaw.

Dan is finishing work at 1pm now due to decline in business from Covid19 Pandemic so he and Steve can work on building the base for the camper.

29^th – Jon and Annalise joined us for dinner to celebrate his birthday. Had a great time chatting and getting to know Annalise. Daniel and Fran couldn't join us due to the Covid 19 restrictions.