Mon 01: A new month. New aches and pains. Last night had the most unbearable pain in my right side. Near my kidney - but I have been told it's a muscle sprain - and I may have cracked a rib coughing. Charming! Witt (gently) rubbed in some Dencorub and made the pain go away - although my coughing during the night woke him up. Some how I made it through today - picking up paperwork at Embelton, shopping at Beechboro (I like the self-serve check-out at Woolworths). Weather is warming up - going to be 36ºC before a cool change (and some rain, hopefully) later this week.

Tue 02: Melbourne Cup Day. Held on the first Tuesday in November, the $AUD6 million Melbourne Cup is Australia's richest horse race. It's a long way short of being the world's richest horse race - that title belongs to Dubai's World Cup - but ours has been running a lot longer. Witt and were planning on going to Rottnest today - but he has a headache and I still have the 'flu - so we will be staying home today.

Wed 03: Headed off to Penguin Island today - something different. Perth was hot today - 13.4ºC overnight and a high of 37.0ºC today. Two bushfires - one large one in John Forrest National Park (located in the hills, just east of Perth) burnt out 450ha before being brought under control and another one down south close to Nannup kept firefighters busy. A late showery change is forecast for Perth tomorrow. That will be a welcome relief.

Thu 04: Much cooler today - caught up with Mum and Ian before spending some time at the beach. Went to Triggs (a good surfing beach) and caught up with an old bus driving friend from a long time ago - Rod Hammond. Rod is a former Greyhound driver and is currently driving for Adams Coachlines .

Fri 05: Almost the weekend. A sleep in - then decided to catch up on the washing. Did that and hung it on the line. Weather is cloudy - but just the remote chance of a few drops of rain. Attended a wedding at Darlington in the Perth hills - nice wedding - but a long way to go. My muscle aches are getting less (thank goodness) but my nagging cough wont go away (trying Lemsip and honey and lemon drinks).

Sat 06: Today is one of those days when I dont really feel like I achieved anything. I got to bed around 0200, got a SMS from the local small engine (mower) shop to say the lawn edger is ready for collection - then got out of bed around 1030. Troy picked up the edger. We did a bit of housework, before I did the lawn edges. I used the (water) pressure cleaner to blast the paths and driveway. I know Perth is in drought - but this only happens once every six months, so I don't feel too guilty. Tracey is due over this evening to collect the last of her property.

Sun 07: Day 2 of The Weekend. Went to sleep late last night (but happy). I have drunk nearly a whole bottle of Benedryl cough medicine - my throat is nearly clear - but my night coughing is waking up Witt (who is grumpy in the mornings). My back pain is nearly cured (thank goodness). On a happy note - I won Lotto ... well, a $29 payout on an $18 investment.

Mon 08: This month is racing away - over a 1/4 of the way through already! A pleasantly warm day today. I 'bombed' the house this afternoon with insect canisters - after turning off all the power (with the exception of fridges and freezer). Witt and I went for a drive to Hillarys Marina and then down the coast to Scarborough. That killed a couple of hours. Witt took a heap of photos - which will probably end up on his Facebook and Hi5 pages.

Tue 09: Rental inspection. Samantha has moved on. Annette is our new Property Manager. She arrived promptly ar 0930 and did a thorough job. No comments - I guess Troy and I will have to wait for the Property Report to arrive in the mail. A hectic day today - received an email from Tracey - her statement, which I will probably use next Wednesday. Didn't get home until 2300 - back out and about tomorrow morning early - but I should be home again at a respectable hour tomorrow afternoon. Such is life (as Ned Kelly and Ben Cousins said).

Wed10: Rain. Clouds. Puddles. Things I havent seen for quite a while. The result: quite a few traffic accidents - caused NOT by the roads (roads do NOT cause accidents) but by motorists not driving according to the conditions. Slippery, wet roads = drive slower and leave more space between you and the motorist in front of you. A tiring day - I am NOT going to set my alarm clock tonight and hopefully wake up when I have had enough sleep. At least my cold is nearly better.

Thu11: A fairly 'neutral' day today. I didn't start the day with any plans - but I managed to get a few things done that I have been putting off for a while. Small things - like changing the NAME on the Alinta Gas (energy) bill. Nothing else much is happening - I have to start a bit more planning.

Fri 12: Not enough hours in the day - that was my problem today. Too much to do and not enough time to do it all. I did manage to catch up with my daughter (Tracey) and my friend (Ron) - hopefully made some plans I can keep this weekend. I also need to catch up with Mum and Ian - I have ben an infrequent visitor of late. I did manage to send a SMS to Witt's mother - wishing her a happy birthday (for tomorrow). She and Richard plan to spend the day at Esperance.

Sat 13: It was not easy to hide my feelings today - and I couldn't have cared less. I am really annoyed by unreliable people - I was supposed to have a meeting at 4pm yesterday, put off until 10am today - now deferred until around 3pm tomorrow. What a waste of my time. I am very angry. You know who you are - I hope you are ashamed of yourself.

Sun 14: Today was a virtual repeat of yesterday. Fortunately I had no plans - but I was unable to get much done as I spent all day WAITING ... and my patience is very thin at the moment. Please Lord - let me make it to the end of the week without too high a body-count!

Mon 15: Looking back - yesterday was not quite as bad as it seemed. Julie came over and gave me a haircut. Tracey came over and worked on her Statement. Some of Troy's brothers came over and started weeding the lawn. I had a nice dinner (thanks, Witt) and an early night. Today - a sleep in, a visit to number 5 to catch up with Mum and Ian (thanks for the nice sandwich, made by Ian), then a pleasant afternoon.

Tue 16: I feel a bit better today as I was more productive. Out of bed earlier (by 0830), off to Mirrabooka (caught up with Ron), then off to Mirrabooka (shops) and then Midland. Back to Beechboro, dropped Ron home and then down to Willagee. Finished the afternoon/evening on Garden Island.

Wed 17: Troy and I are heading into Perth CBD. I have a 12 noon appointment. Only had to wait until 1pm - the matter has been deferred until Wednesday, 15 December - same time (12 noon), same place (501 Hay Street). Parking was expensive as usual - pay the mortgage or pay for a parking spot. A hot afternoon (37ºC) and more of the same forecast. I have a ME Day tomorrow - nothing planned - just the way I like it. For my friends overseas, this is a special weekend in Thailand and parts of Laos, with the celebration of Loi Krathong festival (the floating of a small raft of flowers illuminated by a candle). It's a very moving festival and is fairly traditional, totally unlike the frenzied Songkran festival which is held in April. In more sombre news, 57 people have died in the Thailand floods - the worst toll for many years. One of the more interesting sights was this one.

Thu 18: The weather in one word for Perth today was hot. It reached 37.2ºC at Mt Lawley (the weather bureau's official site). At home, the outside (shade) temperature was 37.8ºC at 1540hrs (3.40pm) after an overnight low of 17.7ºC at midnight. I considered mowing the lawn, weeding and doing the washing but decided that I would suffer heat-stress. Even housework took a rest today - but I know it has to be done tomorrow if I want any peace and quiet on the weekend from Troy.

Fri 19: Off to the local physio-therapist at 1300hrs (1pm) today. Back, neck and shoulder pains. Half the cost was recovered with HICAPS - so I am only $31.70 out of pocket. I feel much better - but I have exercises to do and have to return Monday afternoon for another session. Hot, hot, hot in Perth. It was 38.8ºC at 12.34pm, but at home the shade temperature was 40.5ºC at 1.07pm. The forecast is for a late shower (of rain) and 5 degrees cooler tomorrow and then showers, storms and cloudy for the rest of the week.

Sat 20: Decidedly cooler today. Slept in - then vaccuumed and mopped. Troy went out car shopping - he has his eyes on a VX (2004) Holden Commodore - his VN (1990) Holden Commodore is getting too expensive to maintain. He had poured thousands of dollars into it over the last 3 years and it is basically worth nothing. The VN is a nice car - but it is never destined to be a clasic car. I am going out this afternoon - may head off to the beach tomorrow if I can get motivated.

Sun 21: A fair bit cooler today - but a bit humid. Troy's brother Peter mowed the back lawn and we both mowed the front lawns. I put some lawn fertiliser on two weeks ago and the heat, water and fertiliser have resulted in nice green lawns. Mind you, two mows and the garden bag is full - so we will get our money's worth this month. I would have liked a trip to the beach - but motivation was lacking. Barry organised a barbecue for us - nice steak, patties, chops, sausages and home made salad. very enjoyable. Thanks. Troy has organised for the two of us to pick up his new(ish) car tomorrow evening.

Mon 22: Up at 0700hrs (7am) but not by choice. Troy phoned to ask me to look for his work keys. I entered Hades (Troy's room), sorted his washing, remade his bed and cleaned his floor (without finding his keys). Troy arrived home and found them in 1 minute - (a) because he knw where to look (b) he could see as the mess was removed. I decided once I was up to stay up and do the washing - including my bedding. Hung it all on the clohes line - a bit worried as the sky was cloudy (but not windy). Dropped Troy's ATM card to him - as he forgot that too. Physiotherapist at 12.30pm. Home to unwind. Troy dropped by at 1630hrs (4.30pm) and we went and picked up his new(ish) car. I will post some photos of it soon. I want to apologise to Ian - it was your 80th birthday (last) Thursday. I thought it was (this) Thursday. Many happy returns and many more birthdays.

Tue 23: November is almost over. Just a week to go. I went to Sorrento Beach today - sunny and a bit windy - but the salty tang in the air was refreshing. Very tired - so an early night tonight.

Wed 24: Very broken sleep last night - I slept in the spare bed (in Tracey's old room). Hard mattress and lumpy pillow. Ouch! Put the fan on - covers over me (too hot), covers off (too cool). Don't know how I made it through the day - but I went to Sorrento Beach again - this time to help some refugees who are doing an intensive English class. Very nice people. Went shopping (Australian and Thai food). Witt cooked up a healthy chicken schnitzel with salad. Very fresh and taste and healthy.

Thu 25: One month to Christmas, 6 days to the (official) start of Summer. The day (shade) temperature is nudging 30ºC in Perth - and warmer in the country. Today I went for a country road trip to Boshack Outback. Located about 2 hours north-east of Perth, owners Deryck and Chrissy Brockhurst have turned their farm into an eco-tourism masterpiece. It's not so much the farm itself, as the co-operation they get and give to their neighbours - so tourists can visit the real Australia - with bushwalks on kangaroo trails, hayrides, an insight into Aboriginal Dreamtime, lake canoeing, yabbi netting, farm animal feeds, billy tea, bush tucker, aussie BBQ and more. I experienced water divining (it works) and boomerang throwing. A long and tiring day - but very enjoyable.

Fri 26: A long but relaxing day today. Weather is now over 30ºC in the shade during the day. No sign of rain. Troy put his new(ish) car in for a major service at the local Holden dealer - they did an excellent job - but charged like wounded bulls. I am planning a quiet weekend. Witt and I hope to visit the local Thai temple Sunday morning.

Sat 27: Despite a relatively late evening yesterday, I was up at 3.30am today as a favour to a friend. I helped to train a new driver on the Fremantle Airport Shuttle run. Fortunately it was a quiet morning - I was dropped off by lunchtime, came home and had a nap. Windy today - that made the 28ºC temperature seem cooler. In other news, businessman Kevin Parry is no longer with us - killed in a vehicle rollover in Bullsbrook yesterday. Over east - it looks like Labor has been wiped off the map in today's Victorian elections. As I said on my Facebook page, oliticians are like baby's napies - they both require changing regularly - both for the same reason.

Sun 28: It was 33.4ºC yesterday and 3 degrees warmer today. Amazing what a few degrees increase in temperature can feel like - maybe it was the absence of wind that did it. Went outside this morning to bring in the washing and wow! The heat hit me. Witt had a bad night's sleep - so we have put off our planned visits to the local Thai temple and Caversham Wildlife Park for a while. Too hot to go anywhere today.

Mon 29: Another hot day in Perth with the mercury reaching the mid-30s again. Perth's road system is stressed - says the media. All it took this morning was an over-height load on the Michell Freeway interchange (just below parliament house) to lose part of its load (a forklift) at 5am and traffic lanes were still closed 4 hours later - you can imagine the chaos. Then - around 4pm a small scrub fire took off on Tonkin Highway (between Great Eastern Highway and Leach Highway). Police and FESA closed that portion of Tonkin Highway. Access to Perth's two airports was a nightmare for a few hours - and traffic chaos ensured - a trip from the airport to Fremantle - which normally takes around 45 minutes - took 1hr 30mins. A long day.

Tue 30: Last day of Spring. Summer starts tomorrow, (01 December). Goodbye Spring - hello Summer. It seemed like it today - even with air-conditioning on high, I was sweating. For years - I shivered in the winter and looked forward to warmer weather - now I have gone 180ºs and look forward to winter. There are a number of signs that it will be a long, hot summer. Already theres a number of serious bushfires in the suburbs (fortunately without any loss of life, yet); the bottle-brush red flowers have passed, the jacarandas have nearly finished their showy purple flowers - we are almost ready for the Australian Christmas Tree - which is really spectacular.