Cabrera
Family Newsletter Diary
Cabrera
Family
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| Renato and Judy Cabrera |
Entries start at the most recent and go back to the
first edition in July 2004. To read the diary in chronological order, jump to the first entry and read backwards.
Judith
Cabrera nee Collins is the second daughter of Con Collins who is the Ground Zero
man for this website.
Judith
is the wife of Renato Cabrera.
November/December
2008 and January 2009
Judy says, “Hi
everyone. I don't have a lot of news for this issue. Renato and I have
had a lot of outings such as going out for dinner and the movies and
catching up with friends prior to Christmas.
Other fun times were going to Elise's Graduation, a Chilean function, a day down to St. Kilda esplanade with Cathy, Elise and Josh, having Tyson and Kate come for lunch, visiting Aunty Nancy, and taking Renato's niece and nephew to a really huge Christmas carnival where everything was for free.
In the last issue I told
you I might have some news into what is causing pain under one of my toes when I
walk. Well, after getting a second opinion from a leading orthopedic surgeon, he
came to the same conclusion as the previous surgeon. They have no idea what it
is so therefore do not know what to do to treat it (all in my mind???? painfully
not!). The surgeons say they have come across it before a couple of times and
are aware that it is something but they don't know what, so if there is anyone
out there that has had this happen to them, let me know. In the meantime I'll
keep on trying to find out what it is and foremost how to treat the pain so I
can walk painfree.
Believe
it or not our house that is being half rebuilt and been through 5 different
building supervisors is still not finished and with Christmas and New Year not
much was going on. At one stage there it was going great guns and I thought it
would be finished before the end of the year, so this has
been going on for a long time now and it is really quiet depressing when
Renato and I go there to see how it’s all going. Oh well, maybe I'll have good
news next newsletter.
Christmas Eve we went to
Mass with Dad and then we proceeded to Renato's sister’s. Christmas Eve
is a very traditional get together for them. They have a feast of a dinner and then
wait up until midnight to open presents. It was a great night and nice for
Renato to be with his only relations that live here in Australia.
We had a lovely
Christmas day lunch at Barbara and Paul's and in the evening all the family
gathered at Cathy and John's for finger food and left overs. It’s a big day
but well worth the get together with all of the family.
On Boxing Day, while
some were chasing bargains at the sales and others were sleeping in, the Golfers
of the family were up extremely early to play the Con Collins Perpetual Trophy Golf
Tournament. Renato and I took Dad out there to watch them roll in, because it
was the 26th Anniversary of the Tournament. John's brother-in-law Neil took out
the trophy.
Without a bang, we saw in the New Year this year and watched the fireworks on TV with Dad so we were in bed quite early. New Years Day was back at Renato's sister’s for more feasting on yummy food.
September/October
2008
Good
news about my day surgery in the plight to find where blood is coming from in my
urine. Bladder was looked at and it’s not coming from there. We have exhausted
most possibilities and we cannot find the source. So the doctors have given up
looking. It's a total mystery, and one that remains that way I hope.
Still on the health side of things after nearly 3 months of trying to find out why it is incredibly painful under my second toe while walking, I’m coming to the conclusion that I have a stress fracture on the top of my foot that is radiating the pain down to my toe. (Don't ask me how it happened because I have no idea). So I'm off to an orthopedic surgeon next week for him to decide if it needs surgery or if I have to wear a big boot for 6 or so weeks - very fashionable. I’ll fill you in next issue.
Renato and I have been busy with Chilean Festival events (due to Chilean Independence day). It's always a lot of fun, food and dancing, except this year the dancing was a bit awkward with a bung toe/foot but I managed to get a few dances in. It was all good fun as usual.
Renato
and I put on a big birthday party for Dad's (Con's) 86th birthday. We cooked up
a feast for everyone to share. Dad seemed to have a great time with everyone from
the family there.
We have gone out to dinner with Barbara and Paul on the spilt the bill and liked the place so much went out with friends from work to the same place. It is called Max's in Leake Street, Essendon - Extremely huge serves so go there hungry.
Had a great afternoon down at Moonee Valley Terrace Cafe with Cathy and her friends. They have free Sunday afternoon entertainment which turned into a bit of a rage - for me anyway.
Last
of all we have been rather consumed with going back and forth to our house. It's
now probably half way through the repair however they have had to stop to obtain
an Engineer’s report and plan to rebuild the half of the front wall and
the wing that sits out on the veranda. It could be held up for 4-6 weeks waiting
for that. Once that is all done the building supervisor says it won't take too
long to put the rest of it back together. I do hope that by the next issue
I can say it has been finished. That will be one head ache over and then I
begin the next big head ache which will be to deal with the real estate agents who
failed in their duty of care to alert us that the problem was developing.
July/August
2008
I did not put any news
into the last Newsletter, there was just too much happening and I lost track of
time. Well I'm happy to say that after my NEW car was hit up the rear and
damaged, I finally have had that repaired and all is back to normal. Needless to
say I was not impressed with the Smash Repairers as it took them 3 and a half
weeks to fix (and it did not even need any mechanical work done) and after all
of that I still had to take it back on two occasions for them to completely
complete it.
Half of the front of the house and veranda has been pulled down, as well as the whole southern wall. It's rather devastating to see, it's all a really big mess. As I write this the next step is having the new foundations put in for the Southern wall of the house. Nobody seems to be as perturbed about the whole ordeal as I am. The builders/supervisors say it will all be back to better than new. (I can't wait and will keep you up to date in coming newsletters)
Renato and I had a nice trip on the Eastlink (pre tolls) with Dad, Barbara and Paul. The navigators, Dad and Paul, were in the front seat, while the rest of us enjoyed the sites. Don't really need to tell you all about Eastlink, I'm sure you've all taken a trip on it.Our destination was Barb and Paul’s retirement village (WOW). I'd retire there just for the swimming pool. Barb will tell you more about that in her news. We then had fish ‘n chips in Rosebud's shopping strip then went to visit Barb's ex, Ernie and his partner Sue. We had a lovely visit with them and enjoyed afternoon tea in their lovely home.
We enjoyed meeting Jessica's boyfriend Bernard everyone calls him BJ they came for dinner to Whitby Street and we think he is really nice. Speaking of Jess and BJ, we went to Jess's Uni where she was in a couple of Short Works plays they were all great but the ones that Jess and BJ were in were the best. We also went out for dinner with Elise and her boyfriend, Josh, to the groovy ‘Comfortable Chair’. We had a great night. We had met Josh before and we really like him too.
Remember in the last newsletter I had two photos of the start of our veggie patch, well it did not do anything spectacular. See photos of Dad holding about 5 potatoes! and Renato holding the carrots & parsnips about the size of Barbie doll’s veggies. All else failed except the dwarfed silver beet, which we have been using. I must admit that the potatoes tasted really good - you could tell the difference. Oh well maybe I'll have more success with tomatoes.
Renato and I joined an over 28's club at the Croxton Park Hotel in Northcote, They play 60s,70s & 80s music with a DJ and live band. We discoed the whole night long, enjoyed a carvery roast, dessert and glass of champagne including entry for $10 dollars each. We will definitely go again - but not too often.
We went to Moonee Valley
with Barbara and Paul for dinner and a show to see the band the
Eagles, well impersonators, but they were very good, we had a good sing along
and a great night.
Over the last few months we have had a few Chilean events, one of which was the South American Song Festival recorded by Channel 31. Very entertaining and you guessed it - lots of dancing after the festival.
We have caught up with
friends, gone to the movies and out for dinner.
March/April
2008
We had a lovely holiday did not go away but did some really nice things. I told
you in the last newsletter we went to Priscilla Queen of the Desert and stayed
in town for the night. On the remainder of the holidays we went for a few bike
rides, lots of movies and out to dinner. We actually went to the Melbourne
Aquarium for the 1st time ever and were quite impressed. The photo of me
with the stingray swimming overhead looks a bit like I'm wearing a big Sombrero.
We caught up on a lot of
things that needed to be done around the house (you know the ones that you keep
putting off until you've got the time to do them?) We caught up with
Barbara and Paul for dinner at Moonee Valley for Barbara's Birthday on the 18th
of February.
we went to the Brunswick
and Moonee Ponds Festivals both held on the same day. Renato did not want
to, but I got a photo of him and Matthew Knight new Essendon (Bombers Coach at
the Moonee Ponds festival. We went to see the fabulous Carlos Santana (see a not
so very good picture) but we had great seats, he was brilliant his guitar
playing was fantastic, we stayed at our old haunt - the Victoria Hotel (the
old coffee palace - where mum and dad had their wedding breakfast) for the
night. We caught up with a few friends for dinner.
We caught up with
Renato's sister and her husband Patricia and Marco for a nice Chilean style BBQ
and we also caught up with Renato's niece and her husband Vivi and Paulo and
their children Genesis and Lucas for yet another Chilean style BBQ. So
it was a great holiday lots of late nights and lots of sleep ins.
Lately we have been going over to Moonee Valley with dad and taking him to the odd movie, dad gets in for free!!!!! and his carer does also. We have had two really big Chilean events this month. They are always very late nights but lots of fun, food and plenty of dancing. We celebrated our birthdays which are one day after the other and seeing as mine was on Good Friday this year I didn't feel quite right about celebrating on such a day, but we made up for it and had a double whammy on Renato's.
We had a small gathering
on the banks of the Maribyrnong for Easter Sunday and took a picnic lunch. Barb
and Paul together with Graham, us and dad and Jessica came along with her two
friends Olivia and Michelle (see photo's) we all had a nice time, oh and
Bear came too.
We have started up a vege garden at Whitby Street - We have planted parsnips, carrots, silverbeet, broccoli, onions and potatoes. You saw the picture of it in the newsletter – did you guess what it was?? Of course this is only a small portion of it and only seedlings, I may have a more significant photo next newsletter.
We where invited to
dinner for Elise’s (our God daughter) 17th birthday. Cathy and John put on a
fabulous spread - chicken and corn soup, lasagne, zucchini slice - all home
made. We finally got the chance to meet Elise's boyfriend Josh and Jessica had
her friend who is a boy, Ash. Josh and Ash are long time friends, we had a
really nice night, thanks Elise.
Not much more news on the house, we are still waiting for Engineers alteration to the scope of works. We're afraid that it will be the middle of winter before any works are started, we still have not signed off on the building contract for the work, however we are at ease knowing that the house will one day, be back to normal.
We took Bear up to the cemetery for the first time just recently to visit mum's resting place, we let him take the lead and asked him where was Grandma (Bridget)? He sniffed around a bit and to our surprise he actually put his paws up along the edge about 5 lots away from mum, we would not say he went straight to her, but he was furiously searching and sniffing, there was some sense of knowing. He has not forgotten her, when we told him he was going to see Grandma his ears pricked up as if it was yesterday. Who said dogs have a short memory!!!!!
Last but not least, I had a car accident on the way to work the other day. A guy ran up the back of my car while I was stationary behind a tram that was at a stop. I am OK, but there was a fair bit of damage to the rear of my 9 month old car. It will be off the road for 2 weeks. Luckily, all the parts have to be replaced with new parts and the engine side of things did not get damaged and most of all, no one was hurt.
Until next time - take care
January/February
2008
We had a fantastic time at
Wade's (my godson's) 21st birthday. I know you've read and saw the pics,
but no one said anything about Graham his continuous parade of different
(silly) hats, and after he had finished parading them a partygoer would put it
on while Graham would appear with yet another hat. You had to be there and
probably be slightly inebriated to find it as funny as we did. Eventually you
had all these kids, including Graham, parading around the party with these silly
hats on.
I was very proud to
attend the engagement of my first Godchild Aaron Powell (my best friend
Angela's son) see picture, the party was at his mum's house and was fully
catered for by a gourmet food catering company. We had a fabulous night
mixing with the youngies and the oldies.
We went to an 18th
birthday party just two houses up in the street, we thought that we would only
be popping in for and hour or so, we had such a great time and for once I could
have a few drinks because I did not have to drive. Well I had a few too many and
we staggered home about 3am in the morning (now I'm really glad that
everywhere we go I can't drink) getting too old for that sort of stuff.
We also went to Jessica's 18th Birthday party which was a lot of fun, she had a mixture of family and her friends, it was another great night mixing with the young and the oldies.
Early in December we had
a memorial for mum's first anniversary. Barbara had organised a wonderful
tribute and compiled a keepsake DVD of mum's life from beginning to end and
a CD of many photos. It's a real treasure to keep and look back on and reflect
on what a wonderful mother and person she was. Thanks Barbara for arranging the
memorial.
Leading up to Christmas
we did all the usual things like catching up with friends going out for drinks
with work colleagues, as well as fitting in our usual going out for dinner and
catching a few movies.
We had a very interesting
night with Renato's sister Patricia and brother-in-law, Marco. We went to this
Tango night at an all-you-can-eat restaurant, the band played some absolutely
beautiful Tango numbers, but in the middle of all of this you could get up and
they would teach you how to do various Tango steps, then you could dance around
with all the pros and try to do Tango. We were not very successful at it, but
really enjoyed the music and the night.
Christmas Eve was spent
in the usual Chilean tradition with Renato's sister and her family, having
dinner late sitting around until midnight and then opening presents. After that,
you continue on eating special Chilean cake and a special Chilean drink
(somewhat like Kalhua and milk) until you get so tired that you call it a night.
Christmas day we had a
quiet lunch here at home just Renato, Dad, Bear and I. I cooked a big Ham
on the Bone (1st time ever) and might I say it was yum. After that I took
Renato into work.
In the evening all the family got together at Cathy and John's it was a really great night and went on until about 3am in the morning.
New Years Eve as you will
all remember was about 40 - very hot. We spent the night with Dad this year,
just watched a movie then saw in the New Year. Renato and I stayed up until
about 2am drinking, who could sleep in that weather. New Years Day was spent as
usual with Renato's family as the tradition is to Celebrate on New Years Day.
We caught up with our old friends from the St. Vincent de Paul Society - we catch up with them on a regular basis but I thought it was about time you saw a photo of them.
Rene and I decided that we would go to the Australian Open. We had never been before so we thought we would just buy a Ground Pass ticket. Well it rained off and on the entire day, and so when the rain stopped it took them about 1 hour or even more to dry up the outside courts and as soon as they did that, it started to rain again, this happened all day from 10.30am in the morning until about 5pm at night. So we never got the chance to see one single game of tennis. But we did get a few photos: Me with Federer and Renato with Gonzales, oh and us under the umbrella on the lawn area watching a match on the big screen. (see pictures) good news is that we got our money back. And we have decided that next time we will probably stay home and watch it on TV as usual or book tickets for an arena.
We are on 4 weeks holiday at the moment and we have a few things planned (not going away this year). We spent a night in town on Chinese New Years Eve. During the day, we went to “Priscilla, Queen of the Desert”, what a great show - we loved it, the music and costumes are really fantastic.
We are looking forward to going to see Carlos Santana later in the month for our 8th Wedding Anniversary, so more news on that and our holiday adventures in the news newsletter.
Good news on our house in Brunswick. Our Insurance company is paying the claim to repair the damaged caused by the leaking pipe from next door. Unfortunately, there are a few other areas of damage that their Engineer says is caused by trees and drought and we'll have to foot the bill for that. Work has not commenced as yet because we are still waiting for reports and contracts to be drawn up. It is a really huge and expensive job, half of the front of the house and the whole southern wall has to be pulled down to carry out the works. After all of this is over I aim to represent myself at the small claims tribunal for other expenses I have incurred in regard to the damage, against the Real Estate Agent that did not inspect the property in 3 and a half years.
September
2007
Con’s surprise party
Renato planned and organised a
surprise 85th Birthday for Con. This was when he was still playing bowls
and we thought that while he was out at bowls we could do all the bulk cooking
and set up the house so when he got home, he would not know a thing. However
after making this grand plan, dad gave up bowls and Judy started to panic -
wondering how to prepare all this without Con hanging around. Renato organised
it so all members of the family could just come and enjoy themselves, so he
arranged to do all the catering which he did and members of the family all
shared the cost. Well, believe it or not, we managed it. We had to pretend the
night before that we were cooking for Barbara and Paul coming for tea and I was
making extra meals for the Sunday and Monday - we had to explain why we
were doing all this cooking! Thanks to Barbara and Paul who picked dad up and
took him out for about an hour before party time. That gave us just enough time
to set up the tables and get out some nibbles. Everyone arrived on time and when
dad got home he was genuinely surprised.
News on Frederick Street
We are still waiting to officially
hear from the insurance assessors if the insurance claim on our house is going
to be paid. Maybe they don't officially tell you! The builders that are coming
out to do quotes from them say, that they normally would not go to the trouble
of getting quotes from builders if they were not going to pay. So I'll keep
you all informed when I know more. Can't wait for it to be all over.
A very Chilean time
We have been doing a few Chilean things lately. In August, we had a formal
dinner dance to celebrate the 34 year Anniversary of this Chilean Club here
in Australia. As usual it was fun, food and dance. It has also been that time of
the year,16th September which is the Chilean
Independence Day and is celebrated with great patriotism and pride. There is
a festival that runs over two days and all the Chilean communities come together
- food stalls, south American crafts, there is plenty of entertainment from
all over Latin America, national costumes, traditional dancing, plenty of food
(what else is new). Then whenever you feel like it, you can dance to some very
exciting music, either indoors or outdoors. So it's a pretty wild weekend
and as much as I love it all, it's very exhausting and takes me a week to
recover. Renato tells me that in Chile all the streets are decorated and people
party in the streets for a week - they even have a national holiday. I don't
think I would ever survive a week of all that frivolity
July/August 2007
Judy
& Renato are please to report that it looks like our Insurance company is
going to pay the claim for the damage to our house, which was caused by a storm
water pipe belonging to the house next door, that was broken before it got to
the drain. We are certainly very glad that we discovered this broken pipe
and managed to get photos of it before the neighbours had it repaired. However
it looks like they are only going to pay for the repair to the southern wall and
not to other area's that we believe have been affected by the same cause, anyway
we will see, the builders are waiting to put in their final quotes once they
have the engineers design. It's going to be major works, they have to pull
up carpet, crank up the roof, pull down the southern double brick wall of the
house, restump (underpin) rebuild the wall and ceiling, render, replaster, fix
the flooring, paint and relay the carpet. So we are very happy that for
once we have a story about an Insurance company that pays a claim. Which
Insurance company? Allianz.
Since
the last newsletter we have picked up our new car, It's a Honda Civic, what a
little beauty, nowhere near the power or prestige of our previous car,
but it rides quite well, hardly uses any petrol, and is easy to park, oh and
that new car smell, it's the first brand new car that Judy has had and she's
excited.
We
have had a few outings and catching up with friends over the last couple of
months and that is always fun. One Chilean function, oh Judy thinks she's
getting too old for all the energy needed to attend, those Chileans sure know
how to party. Been out to the movies and dinner a couple of times.
Judi's
been for a couple of interviews with the salvation army for part time office
administration work, but to no avail, however she is being very fussy and only
wanting a certain amount of hours and days and close to home, and believes when
the time is right, the right job will be available, looking after dad (Con) is
becoming a little more demanding and that is really the first priority for now.
So she's still at Coles and has changed from being a checkout chick to stacking
biscuits on shelves.
We
had a luncheon at Dad's (Con) bowling club, set menu and live entertainment,
Barbara and Paul came too, it was a pleasant afternoon and a good way to catch
up on each others news, Barbara and Paul, put the live entertainment to good use
while Dad watched on.
We
attended Jessica's school production as we do every year and this year Jess had
the lead role, she is a star in the making, real professional and maintained her
Yankee accent all the way through without a single hiccup, we are so proud of
her. I'm sure she will tell you all about it in the Zoch's news, we
captured a couple of photo's of her after her dad gave her a bunch of long
stemmed yellow roses after her performance.
We
were going to a Xmas in July at Dad's bowling club and on that very same morning
we had to take dad to hospital emergency, he said if we did not continue on to
the bowling club he would not go to hospital, so we had to fill his seat as
tickets prepaid, and Cathy came to the party, it was a nice lunch, but with dad
in hospital we just ate and then left, to go back and see how dad was.
Last
but not least Bear's news is that he is losing weight, still very slowly, but he
eats anything now, he's having a lot of fruit and veg, dry noodles, rice and tit
bits have been cut down, his leg is very much improved, but it does give way on
him now and then. He thought you might like to see how he was a pink dog
for about two weeks. Somehow after being out the front and rolling around and
basking in the sun on the red bark in the front garden, he appeared at the front
door looking like this.
May/June 2007
Judy and Renato have not heard anything more at this time on the Insurance claim on their house. Four weeks ago an assessor for the insurance company came out. They sent a building engineering company out to do another building Inspection report for them. The insurance company is writing for that report to make the decision on the claim, however they think all this is eventually going to be a Current Affair/Neil Mitchell tell all. In the meantime Judy and Renato went to an auction for a house in the same strip of terraces that was in need of renovation and were shocked to hear it sell on the day for a staggering $455,000, now they are keen to see how much the next one up for sale in the same strip will go for. It has been tastefully renovated and they are asking in excess of $480,000.
John very kindly gave up his time to strap the wall of the house that is falling. He arranged getting the steel rods made to size, then Renato and John did the labour to do what is called strapping or tying the house. This is a bandaid effect to ensure the wall does not fall on the house next door, it is only temporary and will not hold it forever, but at least I can sleep peacefully at night. So to thank John for all the work he went to we took him, Cathy and the girls out to dinner at La Botte restaurant. Note Elise with the wine bottle top eyes - it's an old party stunt that Uncle Graham used to do with beer bottle tops.
We had a nice dinner out with a girl I work with and her husband she is a real wag and loves to gossip about work, so given that I'm only there 3 half days a week, it was great to get the rundown on everybody and everything, she's a real comedian too, so Renato and I had a good laugh that night.
Mother's Day was the 1st Mother's Day without mum, the day before we went up to her resting place and visited her. I had news before I went that her good friend Margo Tankard was passing away so asked her to make a special place there for her. Sadly on Mother's Days Margo passed away. On Mother's Day Renato took me out for a lovely brunch and we went to the movies (we had the whole theatre to ourselves). I have to admit that I was a bit teary that day. (See report in Con Collins news).
We had a wonderful day out in May to help Paul's mum, Pauline, celebrate her 90th Birthday at Moonee Valley Racecourse Bistro. It was our 1st 90th Birthday party.
Bear is well on his way to recovery, he has now started to put his repaired leg on the ground, but he still holds it up if he is walking very fast. All his confinement cages have been taken away, but his days of playing soccer are over.Poor Bear, we are sure that he wonders what he has done wrong, he still needs to lose weight and he does not get any tit bits (well not from Judy anyway) so he gets shut out when we are eating. Also his walks are much shorter and he is desperate to play fast running games and we can't let him do it.
That's about all from us but I thought you might be interested in this place. We had to get rid of some old petrol that dad had stored for years around the sideway, so we took it to this place www.darebin.vic.gov.au/detox. You can dispose of fluoro tubes, petrol, paint, motor oil, gas bottles, car and household batteries free of charge, and given that these things must be disposed of properly to protect the environment and your family health, we thought it would be of interest to some.April 2007
Judi says, “We have been rather housebound because Bear has to be confined and we feel terrible having him confined as it is, without going out and leaving him there. Bear is slowly getting better, we found out why he has to be confined for so long and that is that the replacement crucial ligament is only about as thin as fishing line and with too much movement it can break very easily and he has to wait until his scar tissues moulds to this "fishing line" before he can be moderately active again. He has got used to his confinement and has been a pretty good patient thoughout his first 4 weeks.
We had a lovely Easter Sunday at Whitby Street, most of the family went away, Graham came up for a visit in the morning, then Paul, Barbara, Pauline and Lisa joined us for a BBQ, then later in the afternoon Andrew, Sophie and Josh joined us for sweets, a nice day all round, Barbara took photos (see above).
Not much news on our house that is falling apart, except we have seen a solicitor who has turned the tables and said it is a house insurance claim. I put in the claim and boy, they acted quick. They came running that night to make sure the wall was not going to fall on the house next door and the next day the assessor came out. I am still waiting for a couple of final reports so I can send them to the assessor, and find out either way if they will pay the claim. If we don't have any success with them, we will then consider seeking some form of compensation from the real estate agent. I have been told the wall will have to come down and it's a big and very costly job, costs that I have been gathering run up to in excess of $100,000. In the mean time I have to have the house strapped - tied is what it is called, which I have been asked to have done by the assessor. It involves 2 steel rods in each room running from the outside wall through to the other side of the hall wall and a steel plate bolted each end, basically to hold the wall from falling. John Zoch has been very helpful in my plans to get this done. He has arranged for the steelworks to be made up and has offered to put up the rods, and we are really appreciative of his help. This should be done by this weekend 28 or 29 April and after that, I will be able to sleep easier at night especially when its raining. I worry about the wall of my house falling onto the house next door.
Renato and I had a lovely Sunday afternoon on the Maribrynong with Barbara and Paul. We each took a bottle of wine, cheese and bikkies and other tit bits, and sat blissfully soaking up the relaxing atmosphere.
Renato and I had a great night out with Cathy and John, Jessica and her two friends Sam and Olivia. We all went to a show at the Last Laugh at the Comedy Club in the city on Anzac Day eve. We laughed our heads off while we were entertained by 3 or more stand up comedians.
We do have some GOOD
news. We bought a new car, which we do not get until July as the supply is not
enough for the demand and there is a wait for it. We think this is because the
RACV gave it a write up as the best car in its field for 2006 and it's had very
good write ups in the cars mags and the Age. It is a Honda Civic GTI 4 cyl 1.8L
engine automatic front wheel drive - alabaster silver. So we can't wait
till July for that. VROOM VROOM VROOM.
March 2007
It’s
been a very busy time for us let's start with the day before we went away.
Bear tore his crucial ligament and he is hopping along on 3 legs. He has
to be confined - the poor thing does not know what he has done. We have taken
away all his toys, he is not getting tit bits (for weight loss)’ he is not
going on any walks and he can't play soccer. He even had to have new sleeping
arrangements made, but they are more luxurious than what he had before. He
is due for surgery on 30th March. Just when he has got used to all of this, now
he is to be strictly confined to a small cage with only enough room for him,
food and water for a minimum of 5 weeks and after that, he has to take it easy
for about 3 months, poor Bear!! He is going to need lots and lots of cuddles.
So we went away to Yarrawonga to a time share resort called Murray Valley Resort - and we did nothing but rest we veged out, swam, laid around, and totally relaxed. The resort facilities were really fantastic and we only ventured out for a sunset dinner cruise on Lake Mulwala. I entered the “Knock out 8 ball” competition and made it past the first round, but was knocked out in the second round, but I sure gave them a round for their money we had a great week.
As most of you may be aware, the tenant vacated my house in Brunswick, and I found out the agent had not inspected the property in 3 years and 5 months. During that time, there has been some sort of drainage problem, and the house has been slowly lifting up, so there is extensive cracking (you have to see it to believe it) and the side walls of the house are falling outwards away from the house and the front is falling out too, and the floors in 3 rooms are floating above the bearers. It's very unsafe looking and totally unliveable. If I sell I'm going to lose a lot of money, and if I repair it's escalating to $80,000+. Needless to say, I am seeking legal action to claim compensation from the agent. Wish me luck! In the meantime, I cannot go ahead with any figures for compensation or even sell until I have all the soil tests, engineers reports, underpinning and stumping reports, builders, plaster's etc, etc; as I need all of this for estimating how much I can claim and as proof etc. So as you can imagine, this is consuming most of my life at the moment, and I'm asking all to say a little prayer to help me get through it.
Whilst still on holidays we had lunch with an old friend of dad's, Thora Carne. She and her husband, Ern Carne (deceased), have been friends most of their lives. We picked her up from Doncaster and we all went to the Doncaster Hotel. We had a lovely afternoon catching up, food and surroundings were very nice even though the meal & drinks were quite expensive. We also caught up with an old friend of dad's and mine, John Carter. We worked with his wife, Mary Carter (deceased) at ANL. We went to the Kooringal Golf Club for lunch (it was a treasure of a place - beautiful surroundings, very nice meal and very reasonable prices) I'm sure not many people know about it. We had a great afternoon, John Carter who I have always called ‘Baby John’, and still do, is always very entertaining.
Dad and I attended a St. Joseph's School, West Brunswick reunion - I had never been to one before. Dad did not meet up with anyone from school days as he was only there for one year, however he knew a lot of people from the parish (see photo). I caught up with a lot of school mates, none of whom I would hang around with after school, just ones that I knew. It was great fun. They all recognised me and I only recognised them when I read their nametag (how embarrassing). The highlight of my day was seeing Sister Theresa. She was the most blessed nun. In my day, most of the nuns were cranky and just wanted to cane you. But Sister Theresa was an Angel. Mum would always pick me a pink rose, that I took to school especially for her. She is still warm and caring and had all the time to listen to you. Another person I caught up with was Father Spillane. Father is now retired, but looks well and is just as caring as he always was.
Renato
and I both celebrated our birthdays in March, we went out for dinner and to
the movies.
We went to Elise's 16th birthday party which was a lot of fun, even though the older generation was barred from the younger generation's fun and games. And we had a great day with our 1st family reunion for the year down at Mary's place at Patterson Lakes. Thanks Mary! It's always very nice coming to your place.
January/February 2007
Sorry there was no news
from us in the last newsletter. December
was all too overwhelming and there was not much more on our minds other than
mum's passing. Over the past 2 months we have been spending a lot of time,
fixing and tidying up things like cupboards and the garden that did not get done
properly for the last 4 years as mum consumed most of our time each day.
In November we went to my
Goddaughter Elise's fashion parade that completed the course she did with Susan
Johnston. We were so proud of her and she was terrific.
We had a nice day at
Cathy and John's on Melbourne Cup
Day and watching the big race on their very big TV screen
made you feel as though we were right there - only thing was we did not back the
winner. As usual we spent Xmas Eve with Renato's family as is tradition in Chile
to eat, drink and be merry then open up the prezzies at midnight. We had a great
time.
Christmas Day we had a nice lunch. Renato made his famous Chilean Pork Belly and we had plum pud for dessert. We set a place at the table with a picture of mum and one of her crafty Pine Cone Xmas Trees and burnt a candle in her memory. We spent the evening as usual with all the family at Cathy and John's- that was a great night.
New Years Eve we went to
a Vietnamese Restaurant with Cathy and John and then went back to their house
for some good music, wine and a few laughs. We took it pretty quiet as we saw in
the New Year.
New Year’s Day was
spent with Renato's sister and family as it is a tradition to celebrate New
Year’s Day with all the family. It was a great Traditional Chilean feast.
Barb, Dad, Renato and I
took Joan and Maria out for dinner to thank them for all they did to help us on
the day of mum's funeral. They have been very loyal friends and they offered to
help - we did not even have to ask. It so happened that the day after we
took them out for dinner, it was Joan's birthday so we got a cake and sung Happy
Birthday to her (see photo below). Thanks Joan and Maria.
We had a bit of disturbing news in regard to our house that we have been renting while living with Dad. I was called by the Agent 3 weeks before Christmas, to inspect the house as the tenant reported major cracking and she was worried about her safety. To cut a long story short, there is a drainage problem that has been occurring over some time, and the house is rising up and all the walls are leaning out. The building inspection says it’s quite a large sum of money to fix the problem and once that is done, we have to wait 3 years for the house to settle back down before we can repair cracks etc. Bit of a dilemma, however I have found out that the Real Estate Agent did not inspect the property for 3 and a half years. I have written to them asking for answers to my questions in regard to their failure of duty of care. I meet with them the day the tenant vacates and I feel confident that there will be a solution to this problem. Will let you know in the next newsletter.
We had Jessica and my god-daughters Alex and Elise come and stay on the Australia Day weekend. We went shopping and to a groovy place called The Comfortable Chair, to eat and be comfortable (see photos of how comfortable you can be there). We also went to the movies (Happy Feet – it’s great), caught a train (see Alex and Judy photo) to Federation Square in particular the amazing and free ACMI building.
Oh and Jessica showed me all the great basement clothing shops along Swanston Street - very fashionable and cheap. We watched a DVD and had a lot of fun. The weekend came to a close after all the family gathered at Graham's for a BBQ to welcome Tyson home - it was great to see him home again and to catch up with the family.
Throughout the last couple of months we have been going out to dinner and the movies- our usual entertainment- and I can highly recommend "The Pursuit of Happyness" & "Blood Diamond”.
We went to the 1st birthday of Renato's niece, Vivien’s son, Lucas at a park with children's playground. It was a great idea - the children had a ball. (see photo Judi and Lucas)
Renato and Dad have installed a home made rain water saving device, which involves a large pipe fitting into an outlet in the guttering, which you only need to put up when you know its going to rain. It even has a smaller pipe to add on when the 1st bin if full. Believe it or not on the weekend that we last had a good downpour, they collected over 600 litres of water, and if they had more containers to fill they would have collected even more. Good onya Renato and Con. To add to that we have connected up to recycle our greywater.
Well we are going away to Yarrawonga for a restful and relaxing week staying at the Murray Valley Resort and I already know we won't venture far from there.
Last of all, for anyone who is reading this that attended mum’s rosary or funeral, that I did not get to personally acknowledge (as there was a lot of people there that I made eye contact with or spoke to briefly but never got the chance to thank them for being there), I would like to say it was very comforting to know you were there. Thank you for you care and support.
August/September 2006
Judy and Renato
Well Renato and I have not been doing too
much. The highlight of the month of August was Barb and Paul's wedding. It
was a beautiful day and they made getting married in a registry office very
special. They looked great together, the service was short it had
lovely readings, music and of course the very emotional vows. I was
honoured to be asked to be a witness to this loving union. I also did a reading
and Renato was the ring bearer. At the wedding reception we lived it
up at the Sofitel with a high afternoon tea, very posh and exquisite, then up to
their suite for drinks, speeches and the bridal waltz, and grand views across
Melbourne by day, capturing a sunset and all the lights by night.
We also had another special occasion - the
Christening of Lucas (2nd child) of Renato's neice, Patricia. The
church service was in Spanish and there was a grand Chilean celebration
afterwards.
We went to another one of those
"HOMICIDE an Investigator's Insight" fundraising nights. We took
dad along this time. Proceeds go to Victoria Police Blue Ribbon Foundation.
It is an amazing night out and a great insight into all the
police/homicide detectives have to do to solve these crimes and also
how it effects their personal lives as well. They have a questions and answers
time too, for anyone in the audience that may have any little puzzling
questions about the case. They have a very nice supper which is included in the
ticket price. Next year they are thinking about having a night giving
insight into all the Melbourne ganglands and Mafia murders (that one will be
right up Renato's alley).
We had a nice Father's Day with
Dad and went out to tea with him to MY2K Indian restaurant in Lygon Street
Carlton. He likes it there - we used to go with him and mum all the time.
Renato and I had a great night out
recently. We went to Croxton Park Hotel over 28s night. We had not been there
for about six years, we danced on and off all night until 3.00am. The next day I
felt like as if I'd run a marathon and felt 5 kilos lighter (that weight feeling
didn't last for long- unfortunately). We had a ball and decided that we
will do it more often, only not so late next time.
Bear
I've been a bad boy and nearly got squirted
with the hose from a friend of the people who live next door, but my dad (Renato)
came to my rescue and saved me - and he really blasted this person and told them
if he catches them squirting me with the hose he is going to wrap the hose
around their neck. And all just for barking!!!
I'm not allowed to have
many bones anymore, but I recently got a medium sized marrow bone and it lasted
me about 2 weeks – but the garden does not look too crash hot though!
June/July 2006
Judy and Renato send news from
Whitby Street: “We had Elise (Judy's god-daughter) over for a Saturday
Night at the end of June. We went out for dinner then off to the movies, then on
the Sunday we shopped till we dropped at Highpoint and then met Grandpa (Con) at
Moonee Valley for tea. Moonee Valley is becoming
the place to be lately. The weekend before that we had a bit of a raging
night there with Cathy and a couple of weeks after that went back there again
for tea with Dad (Con).
Early July we ventured
off to an interesting night held by those partying Chileans. It was the final of
a Chilean song festival, with stage performers and entertainment, all in Spanish
of course, except for one contestant who sang "Let's twist again” - In
English. The theme was sixties music and songs and after the competing was over,
it was time for dancing.
We went to see Fiddler on
the Roof our seats where great smack bang in the middle, ten rows from the
front. (Judy can't stop singing If I were a Rich Man). We tried a new
Italian restaurant in Lygon street called Il Caretto, which was very affordable
and very nice. On that same weekend we went over to Cathy's who was having a bit
of a get together with her long time friends and don't ask me how or why, but we
got home from there at 6.30am in the morning!!!!!!! Those of you who went to the
last family gathering at the Quarry will have seen me feeling and looking a bit
worse for where, but we had a great time and a lot of laughs.
Then there was another Chilean function held to raise money for the Soccer Club, needless to say lots of food, wine and dancing. (I, Judy, am getting too old for all of this, it's fun while you are doing it, but the late nights are a struggle for the next couple of days).
Bear has been in Lort Smith Hospital for 2 nights. He had to be put under anesthetic and be given a large enema. What had happened was bones he had eaten did not digest and became little bits of sharp bone all compacted in his pooh and he could not pass it. We have been giving Bear bones almost daily or at least 3 times weekly since we have had him (6 years). The vet said he was unlucky because they do get a lot of dogs come in with this same problem, and given that Bear is getting older now and his system does not work as good at it did when he was younger, they have told us “no small bones”. If any, only large marrow bones and Pig Ears and stuff like that. So beware dog owners. Bear is back on track now and all the trauma is over.
Mum (Sue -Bridget) went
through a pretty bad stage, she had quite a few falls and was just sitting and
really quite unresponsive and not wanting to move around much. Judy was so
worried about her that she called the Priest for an anointing of the sick.
The doctor arranged for a great load of blood test and one came back showing mum
was anemic, her iron level was very low, hence the lethargy, falls and
sleepiness. They recommended a once a week iron injection, for a course of
5 weeks and low and behold not long after the 1st shot, she was all sparked up
and raring to go and she has been so well since then and really quite alert. Mum
is one of the first residents at Gregory Lodge to have a new bed. It is one of
those fancy beds that can be lowered to floor level so there is no risk of
falling onto the floor should she try to get out of bed. I would not mind one of
these beds for myself (especially after a late night, you could just roll into
and out of bed, Ha!Ha!) The remote control positions the bed in any sharp
or angle that you want.
Last but not least Dad (Con) has had the all clear from his bladder specialist for the next 4 months, there is a bit of redness there that needs to have an eye kept on it. On the other hand, dad is having a bit of the same trouble as Bear and is wondering if the Lort Smith hospital can do anything for him.
A very good friend of Dad's and Uncle Bill's. Owen Whelan (one of the Whelan the Wreckers brothers) passed away during July. Unfortunately Con could not make it to the funeral because it was all the way down at Portsea. Dad feels a bit like a celebrity, one of his Grandchildren Jessica is making a documentary on him, so she came over and filmed him and asked a lots of questions about his part in World War 2. She is now writing a book on the same subject. So if anyone wants an autograph!!!! Winter and outdoor bowls in Melbourne is a bit slow, wet and cold but Con is still out there playing twice a week.
May/June 2006
There was no
news from me in the last newsletter because of a naughty mouse, I was
having diabolical problems, I don't know if anyone has come across this, but my
mouse was on the blink so when I opened the computer the mouse decided that it
would open all these programs seconds between one and the other, the arrow just
went berserk flying all over the screen without my even touching it, I basically
had no control over it's actions. Anyway it took a few weeks to find that an old
mouse was causing all my computer problems.
So
as you would have read in the last newsletter, we enjoyed a nice family
gathering and also Easter Sunday at Gregory Lodge with mum. Towards the end of
April we went to a Latino market held in at the Queen Victoria market. That was
full of fun, traditional costumes, singing and dancing, as well as good food. On
Anzac Day we took dad to the Northcote RSL in High Street Northcote and had a
very nice meal it happened to be $10.00 Buck Tuesday and everything on the menu
was $10.00 bucks. Those of you who remember going there for a family get
together would now be surprised by it's transformation through an extensive
renovation. It's very impressive (we should go again for a gathering - it now
makes for a good venue). Also during April we went to a few movies - 2 that I
would highly recommend are Eight Below and The World's Fastest Indian, probably
now on DVD.
We
took dad out again this time for a meal to the Pascoe Vale RSL in
Cumberland Road Pascoe Vale, this has been renovated too since we last went and
it was a very nice meal. We caught up with some old St. Vincent de Paul
friends for dinner. But the absolute highlight for the month of May (apart
from watching Wade play footy) was our outing with Cathy to Werribee. We
took the girls to a birthday party and while they were there we filled in our
time as we waited for them at The Werribee Plaza - dinner and the
movies (Take the Lead, a good movie for the younger ones). Not everyone's cup of
tea for a great night out. As it happened another mother drove the girls home so
we could have spent our night out somewhere more exciting!
At
the start of June we danced and sang the night away at Ricky's 40th birthday and
had a fabulous night but suffered badly for it the next day. And we went to see
our budding Actor, Jessica, in her school production of The Belles of St.
Trinnian’s - she was fantastic as usual and is born for the stage.
Renato's
cleaning company got a new contract for a few buildings and the Marina at
Docklands, they told Renato that he was the only person they could
trust to put into the job, however the Management of the place where Renato is
now, advised Renato's cleaning company that if they lose Renato then the may
well lose all the contracts the cleaning company have with them. So for this
reason they cannot risk losing all the contracts they have and Renato does not
get to go to the Docklands. It's a bit unfair that someone should do this,
preventing a person from a great opportunity.
Mum
has been having a few falls lately and is becoming more frail these days.
Recently we had the priest from the nearby parish of St Brendan's come to give
her an Anointing of the Sick and Holy Communion.
I sent a letter to the new Federal Minister for the Aged about 3 months ago re staff ratios for residents in dementia wards. We finally received a reply on Friday – unfortunately, the 3 page missive was a whole lot of ramble and not really relevant at all to our query.”
March
2006
Judy has
written another
letter to the new Minister for Aged, Santo Santoro, outlining her concerns
on staff ratios in Dementia Wards. She was not happy with the response from the
previous Minister, so she's hoping that this new broom may sweep clean.
She has not heard back as yet, so maybe she'll have a response she can
share in the next newsletter.
Judy says, “We had a
wonderful three week holiday. In the first week, we caught up on all the things
that you let go and they mount up to become big clean up job. We adjusted
to late nights, watching movies and unwinding from the normal routine.
Because we were away when the
family farewell do was on for Tyson, we got the opportunity to farewell him and
wish him all the best at the Glenferrie Hotel, with all the young ones. We had
a great night with all the gang until the early hours of the morning and
were so glad we had the opportunity to bid Tyson Bon Voyage.
The second week of our holiday, we went to the Nepean Country Club.
The 3rd week of our holiday was spent going to the pictures, out for tea and winding ourselves back up to getting in the work mode.
During our holidays this year, we spent the second week at the Nepean Country Club Resort, Boneo, which is an eight minute drive inland from Rosebud Beach. We fulfilled our intentions of totally veging out. We were in the swimming pool everyday, we tried our hand at beach volleyball, played a lot of snooker and table tennis, we even gave the gym a go - but did not last long in there.
The resort had everything we needed and we did not venture very far away for it at all. We took a few drives down to Rosebud and Rye beaches and the shops and took a few walks along the beach. We hate to admit it but we watched a lot of DVDs, so we can't pick on Barbara and Paul anymore. For the first time in our eight years of going away at the same time every year, it did not rain and we had magnificent weather. Every other holiday it has rained or been cold. The resort accommodation was fully self contained with everything we needed for a home away from home.
We celebrated our 6th Wedding Anniversary on 26th February while we were on holiday and we enjoyed a beautiful seafood dinner.
We loved the Resort so much
we bought a Time Share in it!
The last weekend of our holiday we spent
a lovely Sunday with Barbara and Paul. For our birthdays, they took us on an
adventure that started off early in the morning. We went to the Melbourne
Observation Deck at the top of Rialto Building and were amazed at the
magnificent views. It was breathtaking. We really enjoyed it. We had a cuppa and
a muffin then went on our merry way to take a river cruise from Southbank to
Williamstown where we strolled around, had some lunch and wine, then took the
cruise back to Southgate. Then we walked along the Yarra to have a look at the
fish and flags that were to be used in the Opening Ceremony of the Commonwealth
Games. We walked back on the Flinders Street side of the river and over the
Sandhurst Bridge that had only been opened to the public that morning. As
the day drew to an end, we wandered back to the car and collapsed. Thanks
Barb and Paul for a great day - we slept well that night.
January/February 2006
Judi
reports, “We had a great Christmas. It started on Christmas Eve with Mass, and
then the traditional Chilean way with Renato's sister and family. We did not get
to bed until 3.00am.
Christmas Day lunch with Mum at Gregory Lodge, was really special. She seemed to have a great time. We invited Mercy and Joseph (2 of Bridget’s special carers) to come and eat with us. Bear found a few good hiding spots.
Later in the day we had a
great time with all the family down at Mary's house, so much so that we did not
get to bed until 5.00am in the morning.
New Years Eve was a great
night too at a Chilean Club reception with lots of Latin music and dancing.
This night saw us crawl into bed at 4am. Lucky Christmas and New Year only
come around once a year.
Between now and then we have
just been doing all the usual stuff like work, going out for tea and to the
movies. We caught up with a few of our old St. Vincent de Paul friends.
Renato's niece here in Australia had her 2nd child, a little boy, Lucas.
Went to my best girlfriend, Angela Powell’s (nee Romanin) 50th birthday
celebration. We had Alex and Elise (Judi's two God daughters) come
to stay for the weekend. We did movies, went out for dinner, lots of visits to
grandma, went to Vic Market, and the Brunswick Baths.We had a really good time
together. If they ever come to stay again, we now know the secret of
keeping them entertained on the cheap.
We have been planning our holiday which we take towards the end of February. We are staying for one week at Nepean Country Club Resort and are looking forward to doing nothing but veging out. (Photos next newsletter).
Mum (Bridget) has been having a few falls lately. There is not very much we can do about it, medication has been looked at and we just have to put it down to her becoming more frail and not so steady on her feet. Her vision is not the best either so we just have to thank God that she has not had any really bad injuries with the falls.
Bear is going more frequently to see Mum at Gregory Lodge. Aside from that he is just kept busy all day minding Grandpa and the house. Judi and Renato have got themselves into a bad habit. They now have to take Bear for a walk after tea as well as his walk earlier in the day. Bear thought all his Christmas' came at once when Alex and Elise came for the weekend. Each night, Bear slept on Elise's bed all night long. Oh it's a dog's life isn't it!”
November/December
2005
Judy
says, “We have been going out to the movies and dinner almost once a week -
it's our regular thing to do at the moment.
We have been to a few Chilean fundraisers which is always fun. They sure know how to party and until late. The Chilean Club is raising funds at the moment to send to Chile for a Christmas party for the kids on the streets.
We had a lovely afternoon and evening down with Graham and the gang. After tea we watched a Movie called ‘Saw’ (which was a bit gruesome) on Graham's monstrous TV. It was great. Then we played Pontoon with Graham and Brenton. Brenton started off as banker, then I got 21, so I became banker. I hate to brag in this newsletter, but I remained the banker for the rest of the night and cleaned up the table with my final hand being 21. (I had to tell you though that Brenton donated one stack of chips to Renato who was down on his luck and Graham lent Renato four stacks of chips. Had it not been for their generosity, they might not have been cleaned out.”
Judy had some broken capillaries lasered on her nose and cheeks. She says, “When I came out of there I looked like I had a bad case of the chicken pox. It was all quite noticeable for a week and I could not put any make up on it for four days. I have to wear sunblock 30+ for a month. So anyone considering laser treatment on their face should plan not to go anywhere for at least a week (unless you don't mind the stares). The effect of the laser will not be noticeable for 2 to 3 months, however the main one on the tip of my nose has gone already.
Why to we get capillaries?
- Too much estrogen - so as women go through menopause their estrogen levels rise. (This is why more women than men get them)
- Sun damage. For anyone needing to have laser treatment done in small doses, you don't feel a thing.
A lot of our time is spent going to see Mum everyday. We like to make sure that she is getting enough fluids and a walk every day. We always put her down for a sleep too. We like to make sure her cupboards are tidy and that all her clothes are fixed if in need of repair or replacement. We get some wonderful responses from her at times and this means the world to us. Bear still goes to visit mum too, he loves it there and the last time we went he did not want to leave. We had to search hard for him. He was hiding under her bed right up the end where the pillow is. It was almost like he was trying to say he wanted to stay and look after grandma.
Bear went to a Dog's Day afternoon festival in Royal Park. He had fun - luckily the stipulation was dogs must be on leads. He collected a few goody bags, had a few sniffs and we all had a lovely day.
We went to a Healthy Living Festival – the first of its kind for Moreland City Council. It was in a park that is very close to us and was very well run. We picked up a few freebies and were entertained. The festival had something for everyone. Bear came to that too.
We are gearing up for Christmas and doing the last bits of our Christmas shopping.
On Christmas Eve we go to Family Mass at St. Ambrose Church where the children can dress up as Nativity characters. After that we go to Renato's sister Patricia's house, where all the family sit around have a few drinks and a meal. Then at Midnight it's time to reflect on the birth of Jesus, and after that it's time to open presents. When all of that is over you sit back and a drink the traditional drink which is homemade by Renato's brother-in-law, Marco. It tastes a bit like Kaluha and milk and a traditional Christmas cake. This is how Chilean families celebrate Christmas. As usual it's a late night but lot's of family fun.”
September 2005
Judi
and Renato
We had a lovely dinner/smorgasbord at Moonee Valley with Barbara and Paul. We
were amazed at the quality of the sweets that where very decedent and elaborate
- not what you are used to getting at those sort feasts. We controlled ourselves
pretty well, I think (or did we?). Most important we had a great time
together.
Since last newsletter we have been to two Chilean dinner dances - need I say anymore. Great time, lots of food and drink, heaps of Latino dancing and very, late nights. On the 22nd of September it is Chilean Independence day and it is celebrated annually with the Chilean Festival, so on the weekend just prior to that we are off to a weekend full of everything Chilean and looking forward to it.
I have been consulting again with Nicole at Gregory Lodge on behalf of mum and trying to sort out a few things in regard to her care comfort and wellbeing. Dad and I have been thinking that it might be a good idea to set up a permanent craft/material table in her room so she can fiddle around with things, while she is wandering around in there (have to put a bit of thought into it though - re safety etc).
Bear
Bear has been having a bit of trouble with the thunder we have been having.
He is very scared of it and runs around the house trying to find a place to
hide, shaking like a leaf and panting like he's going to have a heart attack.
Even after the thunder is over, he jumps and get scared with any sort of a
banging noise.
His daily walks now have to include going past the school where lots of the children know him now and call out his name. He licks their hands as they poke them through the fence and they run along calling “Bear, Bear” and have to push their hands under the fence just so they can get a pat (Bear loves all the attention).
August 2005
Judi
Judi has written to the Federal Minister for the Aged, in regard to legislating a
ratio of staff to residents in an actively mobile dementia ward in Nursing
Homes. View her letter here. This is the first stage in a campaign to improve the
staffing ratio in locked wards in nursing homes. The campaign will initially be
documented on Judi’s page
on the CollinsPlus website. If you would like more
information about the campaign, contact Judi on admin@collinsplus.com
July 2005
Judi
and Bridget
Judi is
going to write to the Federal Minister for Aged, in regard to legislating a
ratio of staff to residents in an actively mobile dementia ward in Nursing
Homes. She is hoping to work on that in the coming month so there may be
more news in the next newsletter. If you are interested in finding out more
about what has instigated this action, contact Judi through admin@collinsplus.com.
Judi
has also brought some issues regarding Bridget’s care to the attention of
staff at the nursing home. She thought the issues had been sorted out but not
all of them have yet been satisfied. She intends to arrange another meeting with
the head of nursing staff to try and get them resolved. The issues that are yet
to be addressed are for staff to put Bridget down for a sleep
in her bed after lunch, or at least in the afternoon; make sure that she is hand
fed her morning and afternoon drinks if family are not there; for her to be
toileted every time she shows restlessness and lastly that she be given more
fruit desserts.
Judi
and Renato
Renato
and Judi are going to start beginners classes in Learn to Dance on Tuesday
nights. It is a broad range of all the dances the school teaches so it's
like learning the basics of all types of dance. Judi is really looking forward
to it but Renato is a bit worried. More in the next newsletter after we have had
a few lessons.
Judi
has got herself into the routine of her new part time hours at Bi-Lo but
admits that if it were not for Renato having to get up at the same time, she
would probably crawl back under the sheets and not get up for a couple more
hours. Judi loves the 3 mornings shift as she is back home by 11.30am.
June 2005
Judi
I now have
part-time employment with Bi-Lo (who would have ever thought!!) but it suits my
needs at this point in time. I have permanent hours Tues, Wed, Thurs from 6am to
11am and should I work any hours over that, it will be on casual rates. My body
clock is having a hard time adjusting to less sleep and early mornings, but I'm
sure it will adjust.
I've also been
busy trying to sort out a few things in regard to mum's care and well being. She
has been quite unsettled at times lately and I'm trying to get the care
staff to add to, and change, some of the routines that may be causing this.
I've spoken to the Director of the Nurses and Carers and hopefully these
procedures will be put into place soon.
My next task in
relation to care, not only for mum but all others in Nursing Homes, is to get
the Federal Government to give more funding so that residents will not be left
unsupervised - especially in the area of dementia, where they are mobile and a
danger to themselves and others. I will probably be fighting an uphill battle
but I'll do my best.
Renato
My employer's have
promoted me to be their Front Man. They have recently gained some very
important cleaning contracts and want to impress their clients and they tell me
that I'm the only one they can trust and rely on for the job. So I have recently
been moving between three locations: Prahran, St. Kilda and Toorak. The Toorak
complex has six buildings. My job is to arrange the duties of the
cleaning staff, oversee the buildings and make sure everything is up to scratch.
I also do maintenance and keep and eye on systems such as security,
heating/cooling etc. I'm having to work an extra hour a day and
I'm travelling between the buildings on bike, so it's a busy day - but
that's the way I like it and I'm loving it.
Bear
Bear has fully
recovered from his dog attack ordeal. His hair has nearly grown back to full
length and his scars are all covered. He is a little wary while on his
walks but that doesn't stop him. The only trouble is Judi is scared, so he
does not go on any adventurous walks.
Judi
and Renato
We had a great
time at the Chilean Club's anniversary do. Lots of Latin American music
and dancing, food and drink - another late into the night celebration. Those
Chilean's sure know how to party.
We also went to a
fundraising night for the police Blue Ribbon Foundation. Apparently this was the
2nd one they have had due to popular demand. It was called HOMICIDE
"An Investigator's Insight". Two real life cases were presented
in person by Homicide Squad inspectors talking and using real life inside
footage - some footage seen on TV and some footage never shown to the public.
The two cases where big news cases of their time. They explained and
talked about how they did or did not solve the crimes and all that is
involved in doing so, including interrogation footage and some gruesome footage
and stuff that you would not hear about on the news. Real life CSI. It was
followed by an extravagant supper and a really great night. We'll be going
to the next one!
May 2005
Bear
Poor Bear!!!
I stayed in hospital overnight and when I came home the
next day, I looked a sight. For a whole two weeks I was on antibiotics and pain
killers. Half of my hair was shaved off and for a week I had these horrible
drainage tubes hanging out of my back. I had lots of stitches because the dog
bit me in three places, trying to attack the three places they go for (the
organs, the muscle and the bone). I had to wear this hideous buster collar,
which I did not like.
But I'm well and truly on the mend now and I'm back to my
normal self. I'm not scared to go for a walk, but my mum is. She
still takes me, but she's very wary. They only good thing about this whole
ordeal was I got terribly spoiled and my medications were chocolate coated!!”
Judi
“Having had a bit of a traumatic time with Bear, we are a
bit worn out with the worry that it caused us and we did not venture too far
away or go out much so we could hang around to look after him.
However, we have been out to dinner and to see a few good movies. We managed to enjoy a couple of celebrations with Renato's sister, Patricia, which is always filled with good food and music.
We will be off to an Anniversary Celebration at the Chilean
Club late in May and will tell you about that one in the next newsletter.
We had Father Casey over for dinner - he always enjoys that as he can't cook for
himself and he always gets to take home leftovers.
Renato still loves his new job as caretaker and maintenance
man looking after two buildings containing several apartments in
Melbourne's elite suburbs. He says he has never changed so many light bulbs in
his life.
I have been getting quite a bit of work at Bi-Lo but not in
my favourite department - the Deli. I applied for a Citizen's Service Officer
part time position with the Moreland city Council. My application got me
into the last 25 people out of 171 applications. That was good but the next step
was a two hour computer, numeracy and literacy test which I thought was grueling.
I had to work out fractions of time (what the….). Well I flunked. Apparently I
went well with all that I answered, but it was the ones I didn't answer or
finish that I lost the points on. Oh well - Moreland City Council’s loss.”
Ed. Note: That’s the spirit Judi!
It really is their loss.
April 2005
Last family lunch was at Con’s place on 20th
March. It served two other purposes as well as being a family get together.
It was Judy’s 50th birthday AND Renato’s 43rd
birthday. Judy and Renato cooked up a storm and treated the family, and some
special friends, to a great BBQ. The weather was spectacular and it was great to
see everybody there. Elise had a birthday coming up on the weekend after the
event and she was invited to help cut the birthday cake.
Judi and Renato would like to thank everyone for making
their birthday celebration a great day. They had a wonderful time and loved
seeing all the family together. They want to thank everybody for their
wonderful gifts.
Judy has two mornings of permanent casual work at
Bi Lo - aside from any other casual work she might get - and it's 6am to 10am Tuesdays and
Thursdays. She does not know what has hit her having to get up at 5am in the
morning, but she loves the shift because she has the rest of the day to do other
things.
In the meantime she is looking for a permanent-part time
job two days a week or three half days in some sort of job share. She has
already applied for a few in the area of administration/reception or office
work.
Renato started his new job (same employers though) and he
is loving it. It is a sort of promotion looking after two very exclusive
buildings. He was brought in as the best man for the job, where he is in charge
and mainly only does caretaking/maintenance. He is loving it so far and
they are rapt with his ability which is why they picked him in the first place.
Judy says “We had a great night out at our friend’s
place who most of you would know - Angie and Max, together with other friends,
Mary and Ross. It was a formal dinner party which turned into one of Max's
trivia music nights. It's the best fun. We went on into the wee hours of 3.30am
in the morning. Aside from that just been to the movies and out for
dinner.
Now that we've been on our holiday to South Australia, got
over our Wedding Anniversary of 5 years, celebrated our birthdays and over indulged at
Easter. We are just sitting back and not doing much for the time being.”
March 2005
Judi and Renato have been on a holiday to Adelaide, staying
in Glenelg and doing lots of day trips as well as relaxing.
This year, it is Judi’s 50th birthday on 21/3
and she and Renato (whose birthday is the day after Judi’s) will be hosting a
BBQ lunch on 20/3 for family and friends.
February 2005
We spent our Christmas Eve in the traditional Chilean way,
where you eat, drink and be merry leading up to midnight. At midnight, you wish
Merry Christmas (Feliz Navidad) to everyone and then open up the presents, then
you continue on with celebrations into the wee hours of the morning.
Christmas Day was a lovely day. Rene, Dad and Judy had
Christmas lunch with mum at Gregory Lodge. Tables were all decorated for
Christmas Cheer and the mood was festive, it was a joyous occasion and
after our lunch we all went for a nice long walk. Christmas night, as you
in the family all know, was a great arvo/evening -it was a happy occasion to
have everyone together.
It wasn't long enough for Judi to get over the Christmas
bash and then came New Year's Eve (Chilean Style again!) This year we had it at
a reception place. A glitzy affair, with endless food, drink and non stop
Latino band and a DJ in the breaks - so we ate and drank to our hearts
content until 3am ish.
But you guessed it! New Years Day is the big one for
Chileans - so we slept at Renato's sister's place for about 5 hours and partied
on through New Years Day again, with food drink and music.
While it has taken most of my time to recover since then,
things have been quiet. We've been out to dinner and off to the movies a
couple of times. One of the movies was the Phantom of the Opera with
Barb, Paul and Dad.
Now we look forward to celebrating our 5th Wedding
Anniversary on 26 February and our holiday to South Australia (Glenelg Beach
Front Apartment) late February to early March.”
November-December 2004
Judi and Renato went to see BABBA imitation ABBA with a
very nice dinner and show. Judi said “We had a great time and danced to all
the songs. When we closed our eyes, they sounded like the real thing. It took us
back to the 70s.”
Also Judi entered a Melbourne Cup competition in the
local paper, and drew Vinnie Roe. She won 2nd prize in the competition which was
overnight accommodation for two at the King William Hotel on Bell Street with a
full buffet breakfast and Dinner for Two to the value of $80.00.
Lucky Hey.... They enjoyed that prize and made the most of it – Judi
said the accommodation was pretty flash for Bell Street Preston
Lucky Judi also won tickets to Santa's Kingdom. She and
Renato took two of Judi’s godchildren, Elise and Alex. They all had a jolly
good time - it was very festive.
October 2004
Judi and Renato have been enjoying more Latino fun
together. They attended a friendly game of Soccer between the
Chilean and Australian Under 17's. Chile won, but to go to the soccer where three
quarters of the ground is taken up by Chilean supporters, is lots of fun
and very exciting. “Forget the game”, says Judi, “just watch and join in
the fun of very fanatical supporters.”
They also attended the weekend of the Chilean Festival
for Chilean Independence Day. This is non stop day and night eating,
drinking, dancing all Latino Style. They are glad it's only once a year.
Judi's been getting a bit of work at Bi-Lo, but mainly in
the Deli - YUK (all she can think of is the money).
September 2004
Judi and
Renato have been kicking up their heels – Latino style! They’ve been to
§
a latino style Chilean
Dinner dance
§
a Copacabaña Night
Club Dinner and Show (Latino Style)
§
the “Buena Vista
Social Club at her Majesty’s Theatre (Cuban Band).
§
a Trivia and Auction
Night
§
a BBQ for the opening
of a New Ampitheatre in Brunswick
And
there’s been lots of work for Judi this month at Bi-Lo!
Judi was
contacted recently by Paula Bain. Paula is an educator with Alzheimer’s
Australia. They occasionally bump into each other at the nursing home where Mum
lives - Gregory Lodge. Paula is giving a presentation at a two day leisure and
lifestyle conference on 11 & 12 November at the Melbourne Convention Centre.
It’s being organised by Total Aged Services. The theme is “Would you like
to dance?” and will have a very strong focus on dementia.
July 2004
Bear
Collins
Bear is
a highly intelligent dog according to a Canine IQ test. (Also check out the
information on the CollinsPlus Pets
Photo Album)
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