Jack has really fallen on his feet. He has been looking at cars and Mark found an older Camry in Mansfield with only 35000 k on the clock. It is in immaculate condition appears to have been garaged and was owned by an older man who was sinking into dementia. The interior looks new. Jack is one happy camper!
With a spare day in Sydney, we decided to ride the ferries. We traveled from Woolwich to Circular Quay and then over to Kirribilli to have lunch on the wharf. It was a very relaxed way to spend a day.
We had a perfect day to see the Zig Zag in action. An efficient volunteer operation got the train in on time for boarding
I had held on to a long term hope that one day, I could travel on the Zig Zag Railway (originally built in 1869) to carry goods and passengers up the steep sided valleys of the Blue Mountains. The track was cut over a three year period with picks and wheelbarrows in the form of a sloping "Z" up the side of a valley. The engine had to be detached, moved to the other end of the train and reattached to move up each section of the "Z". My father had ridden the train years ago but bushfires had destroyed the infrastructure. However volunteers have restored the train to immaculate condition so I had my opportunity.
We traveled west from Sydney onto the Blue Mountains. Having seen the terrain, it is not difficult to understand the problems of the pioneers trying to move from east to west in the Blue Mountains. The valleys are huge and steep.
For my 80th, the Inchleys had very generously given us tickets to "The Book of Mormon" that was playing in Sydney. It is an easy and uneventful trip on the train to stay with them.
Today was a very sad one for the family as we attended the funeral of Lan-Tian's Dad. His totally unexpected death in what should have been happy times was a massive shock to all who knew him making the funeral even more difficult. There is little that can be said in consolation on a day like today. Our love and best wishes to his family and particularly Lan-Tian and Patrick.
As the probability of turning 80 approached 100%, Claire convinced me that a celebration was appropriate as the prospect of a 90th was way more uncertain. So my wonderful family rallied around and the weather cooperated for a Sunday afternoon celebration The cast included all the family and a few close friends including the Inchleys who had travelled from Sydney. Claire had meticulously planned the sustenance and the ambience was enhanced with balloons provided by Lisa.
Last Thursday was a sad day for us as it marked the end of an era with the funeral of our good friend Peter Raymond. I had known Peter since I was about 17 years old and our friendship continued throughout our lifetime as our families grew up together and we socialised together and holidayed together. His Parkinsons disease slowly consumed him and stole him from us so in the end, 'his death was a release for him and his family. He will be very fondly remembered.
Lachlan had spent some days in the city looking at various aspects of city life. Each student had to prepare a presentation on one aspect and Lachlan chose "Safety". Last night all the students presented their projects to parents and friends. Lachlan had produced a fantastic video on the topic along with a series of posters.
If you've got it - flaunt it! Brett, Cathy, Adam and Kate were invited to a friend's fiftieth birthday with a 70's theme. So they all were able to wear their finest!
