Tue 01: First day of Autumn (Fall). Tuesday? It seemed like Monday again. I don't know why. Old age, maybe? Probably. I am getting very forgetful (about some things). I managed to get my washing up to day (just a few items) and mow (most of) the back lawn. Part of our back fence blew down yesterday during the brief (but destructive) storm which cut a swathe through parts of the north-eastern suburbs of Perth. Has two door to door sales people today - Jehovas Witnesses (sorry - not interested) and then Roller Shutter sellers (nice product - but this is a rental). Took Witt to work - then put out the bins. Early start tomorrow - so I should have a shower and an early night.

Wed 02: It was cooler overnight - and didn't heat up until late in the day. A tiring day. Not as stressful as I thought it would be. Very tired tonight. Feet are aching. I am sweating. Time for the three S's: a shave, shower and sleep.

Thu 03: Amazing - for the first time in (I think) 50 nights, the Perth minimum temperature dropped below 20ºC. Admittedly, 19.1ºC - but it's a hint that summer is ending. Now - some rain would be nice - and daytime temperatures in the 20s instead of the 30s. I was listing to 6PR - Perth's premier News Talk radio station and I sounded off after hearing an interview. Basically - one of the local police districts is having a huge increase in the number of burglaries. The Police Superintendent blamed the large number on 'stupid home owners who do not lock their doors and windows at night, when they are sleeping.' Excuse me, Officer - your police should be out on patrol - to hell with your budget. Your Officers should be arresting the culprits. The Courts should be sending the culprits to jail for the maximum term. The problem is NOT the home-owners - wanting a bit of breeze at night - they can't afford to run their air-conditioners (if they have them) because Synergy is screwing WA householders hard with their electricity bills. I strongly urge ALL my readers to contact the WA Police and send them a strong message telling them to get off their butts and start patrolling ... how many Police cars have YOU seen on the road this month? Then - I want you to send a similar message to the Attorney General - the Courts are far too lenient on the scum which come into contact with them. Rant over! (for now)

Fri 04: A very productive day today, Google is not my friend. I was looking for a local drycleaner and Google sent me to a business that has been closed for years. I went and picked up Tracey and we went to Kingsway Shopping Centre and did a bit of shopping. I also picked out my daughter's birthday card and present as her birthday is 2 weeks away. Tracey made us both a nice healthy lunch and we came home and cleaned up the house a little. We sat down and watched our first Blue-Ray™ movie together called Shutter Island. Tracey made a delightful dinner of grilled chicken and vegetables.

Sat 05: Day 2 of two days of R & R. Went shopping with Troy and then to the Post Office this morning. The rest of the day was mine - to chat with online friends and generally relax. It's still warm and humid in Perth - with no sign (that I can see) of a let up in the weather.

Sun 06: Amazing - only 24ºC today at lunchtime. Pleasant. I know there will be a lot more 35ºC days yet, before the heat is over - but I am making the most of today. Dropped in on Ian, Mum and Brian at number 5 - then home for a nap (after a late lunch).

Mon 07: Labour Day (public holiday). Slept in this morning. Okay - the truth is - I woke around 7am (decided to answer the call of nature), then back to sleep (until I got a SMS at 7.30am). next thing I know it's 10am. I think I heard a knock on the door - but decided to ignore it. The sun is still shining brightly - so I did my laundry and hung it on the line. Brought it in and made my bed. Troy organised dinner tonight - not a healthy choice - but it's a long time between take-aways (although I will have to watch my weight closer as I am 95.4kg now). Petrol is still expensive - but 2c - 3c a litre cheaper tomorrow after 6am (in Perth).

Tue 08: A double celebration today. First - today is the 100th International Women's Day - a global day celebrating the economic, political and social achievements of women past, present and future. In some places like China, Russia, Vietnam and Bulgaria, International Women's Day is a national holiday.
Second - Philips revealed the world’s first CD on this day in 1979. I remember 78RPM bakelite records, then vinyl 7" (singles) and 12" (albums), then reel-to-reel tape, tape cassttes - all before CDs. That's just the evolution of audio. Then came Beta and VHS video cassettes. Now it's DVDs and Blu-Ray. A quiet day today - Troy out of the house at 7.30am off to work, Barry off about the same time (I think), to his sister's funeral and Witt headed off to work - although I never heard him leave. The house is mine for the day - nothing planned.

Wed 09: Air-conditioning installers were due to arrive first thing this morning (around 7.30am), so I made plans well in advance. That was then changed (at 8am) to 11am. Not amused. Quick juggling of people. I arranged for Tracey to drop over - then she called me to say the electrician arrived at midday and needed access to the meter box. Told her where to find that - the air-conditioning installers finally arrived around 1pm (5.5hours late). I was going to give their company a mention on my website - but that sort of punctuality earns a big Thumbs Down. I will follow up that later. Also - the replacement system is a Bon-Aire Evaporative System - heavy on water use - a 'wick' in case of a bushfire and useless on humid days. Thanks to Julie and Tracey for your efforts today - despite having prior appointments. For me - one of those days when I could quite happily have stayed in bed - not much fun - but nothing to really write home about. Unleaded petrol is around 134.9c/litre - down from the 149.9c/litre a few days ago. In other news, Australian PM, Julia Gillard gave US President Obama an iPod - filled with Australian music - but the best songs were left out. Local radio station, 6PR opened its website to listeners to pick the best Australian songs. What do YOU think should have been included?

Thu 10: A long and tiring day - out of bed around 3.30am - home around 6.45pm. A lot done. Witt is organisiong dinner tonight. Petrol prices are coming down very slowly. The latest theory is that fuel prices are being inflated by the Coles / Woolworths duopoly to cover their bid to increase their market share by having a price war of essentials (including bread, milk, eggs, toilet paper and olive oil).

Fri 11: WAD (What A Day). Meeting scheduled for 8.30am - took place around 10.30am - these things happen. Went okay - next appointment is in just over 3 months - starting Monday 20 June. The spate of natural disasters talking place around the world continued today, when Tokyo (Japan) recorded its biggest ever earthquake - a massive 8.8 on the open-ended Richter Scale. It also triggered a major tsunami which will affect countries as far away as Hawaii. I advised friends in the Philippines and Thialand - both countries are on alert for the sea wave (the literal translation of tsunami) to hit tomorrow morning. My thoughts to all concerned.

Sat 12: Note to self: Learn to say NO more often. Then you will be happier - have more ME time and more sleep. A long and tiring day - because I try to be polite and helpful. Earthquake in China. News from Japan that one of their nuclear reactors is having a (partial) meltdown - 200,000 people nearby to be evacuated.

Sun 13: Home around 4.45am - asleep by 5am. Witt was supposed to wake me so I could take him to work as he was unable to get there to start at 8am owning to the lack of public transport on Sundays (and public holidays). No wake up - but I did get out of bed at 9am and he was gone - so I am unsure what happened. Both of us have the next 2 days off - so hopefully we can do something together. Tracey is due to visit this evening - to help me with the backlog of paperwork that needs sorting and filing.

Mon 14: Locally, it's that time of the year again - bring out your rubbish time. Time when people like me drive slower than usual along suburban streets, looking for treasure - in the form of someone else's trash. You get about a week to put out your rubbish - old furniture, white-goods, anything that you don't want. Monday week, the Council starts their cleanup . Tro was grizzling that our kitchen table was a bi wonky - despite having a small fortune spent on tools, he was unable to repair a loose leg. It went out and the world for the day was: recycle. The kitchen table went onto the street verge, the loan extension table (property of Mum and Ian) became a kitchen table. The desk I was using as my computer desk is now in the lounge - for the the LCD TV and Foxtel control box, I souvenired a nicer computer desk - with a keyboard sliding drawer and a spot for the printer and my new collection of books (also courtesy of Mum and Ian). All in all a good day.

Tue 15: Another day of R & R. Relaxation and more relaxation. The only event worth noting was when I repaired two damaged sprinklers. Troy ran over one with his car and he tripped over the other one with his size 11s. Apart from that - nothing of note. I did a fair bit of internet research and chatted with a few friends (who live in the Philippines) - but that's about it. Oh - I did reply to a couple of emails. Fuel prices have bottomed out at $1.37/litre (for ULP 91RON) and look like heading back up to nearly $1.50/litre tomorrow. Fortunately, West Australians have a website - run by the State Government to monitor fuel prices. The Libyan crisis is forcing fuel prices UP - the earthquake in Japan is bringing them DOWN. The high Australian Dollar is helping to take the pressure off too. As a side note - two people commented to me that my sense of humour leaves a lot to be desired. Yes - it probably does - if you had been in my shoes for the past 12 months you probably wouldn't have any sense of humour.

Wed 16: After nearly 3 days of R & R it was time to face reality. I also found out why I was waking up so early. Even though my (block-out) blinds were closed, the venetian blinds behind them were open. I fixed that problem and had a good sleep in this morning - until it was time to head off to the wide open spaces (actually Willeton, Fremantle, Kingsley and Belmont). Home in time to feast on a home-cooked roast chicken and vegetables dinner (thanks, Barry). Shared the meal with Julie, Glenn, Peter and Dale.

Thu 17: St Patrick's Day. Caught up with a few family and friends (by phone) and started making a serious attempt to lose some weight. I am 94.8kg at the moment. At the start of last year (2010), I weighed 99.8kg. My best effort was to drop to 89.8kg about 8 months ago. I know I can do better. I am trying to eat better (more fruit and vegetables, less carbohydrates and fats) - the only thing missing is exercise. Just hanging out the washing or sweeping the floor and I break out in a sweat - because my body is over-heating. I think I have found the cause - and it's not pretty! Okay - this is a Google of my symptoms, but it ticks all the boxes. I will be having my comprehensive fasting blood tests early next week and the results later next week - when I will make an appointment with my Doctor - who I hope will refer me back to my Cardiologist.

Fri 18: Friday - the day before my youngest child has her birthday. Hard to believe my Princess will be 28yo tomorrow. How time flies! For the life of me - I couldn't think of a suitable present - I sent her a message, asking for a short-list and she said she didn't have anything special in mind - so could I give her a voucher - then she can buy what she wants at a later date - when she finds what she wants.

Sat 19: Tracey's 28th birthday. I hoped that summer was over in Perth (at least until late this year, when we have the summer of 2011-12), but not to be. The BoM (Bureau of Meteorology) tipped 28ºC for today, 30ºC for tomorrow and temperatures in the mid-30s (Celcius) for next week. So - 35ºC for Tuesday next week. Not unheard of, says the Bureau. Tracey, family and her friends descended on our home for Tracey's 28th. Best wishes, Princess.

Sun 20: Just when you think you know it all and nothing can amaze you - we had .... (drum roll please) ... the week that was. I can't remember the last time there was so much happening in our world. Here is my summary: (1) The West (USA, Britain and France) have launched attacks on Libya in an attempt to remove the country's leader, Colonel Gaddafi. (2) Australian PM, Julia Gillard is attempting to shore up support for her proposed Carbon Tax (3) A school-boy bully 'snaps' and attacks his taunter, becoming an internet sensation. (4) Women have babies - while that isn't exactly news to most of my readers, women are now being told to disclose to their future employers their plans for motherhood. (5) Earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown in Japan. While power has been restored by part of the reactor, there are fears for food contamination with radiation in the vicinity of the reactor. There is a heap of other news - Knut the polar bear is dead, South Australia's floral emblem (Sturt's Desert Pea) and several species of wattle may go on the banned list of plants after traces of naturally occuring drugs were found in them. Typical reaction from the Attorney-General's Department. Blame the PLANT. Enough rant for one day.

Mon 21: An interesting 24 hours. I like that word - it covers a multitude of things. Fortunately - nothing bad to report. So - what happened? Okay - Vivian (a friend) had to rush to Sydney at short notice - giving me some paperwork and keys. Here - look after things for the next few days please, she said. I reluctantly said yes. So - from 9pm (last night) to 4pm (today) was a blur. Slept from 4.10pm to 8.30pm - before rising. Witt made me a nice dinner - and I raced down the shops for him. Today is the start of the local council's clean-up - but there's still a lot of goodies on street verges - but Troy said NO - don't bring anything home as he is trying to clear space in our shed.

Tue 22: Hmm. 22nd of March. I thought the date rang a bell - yes, it was 12 months ago today that Perth had it's worst ever hail storm, which caused over $100 million in damage. Today - there are still a number of cars whch have not been repaired as panel beaters are still 'flat out.' A number of famous people have 22 March as their birthday. Today is William Shatner's birthday - Captain Kirk is ... 80 years of age. Congratulations. The hot weather continues in Perth - summer is officially over - but Perth is expecting maximum temperatures in the mid-30s Celcius for the next week - sunny - with no rain in sight.

Wed 23: 'Some people are only alive because it's illegal to kill them.' That was on a T shirt I saw recently and it applied to something that happened today - one of Troy's half-brothers pushed me to the limit. Fortunately for him - he removed himself. Apart from that - another long and tiring day. I am going to have a R & R weekend - and hopefully spend some time with Witt.

Thu 24: Some months seem to fly by - from the start to the end seems to be very quick. March 2011 is not one of those months - at least that's the way it seems to me. maybe it's just me - maybe it's the very dragged out Summer (which officially ended at the end of last month) - the Weather Bureau's forecast for the next 7 days is Sunny, no sign of rain and daytime temperatures in the mid-30s (Celcius). Australians are a funny lot. Yesterday's most-read news story was PC (political-correctness) gone mad - a Melbourne (Vic) council banned a local cafe from giving children chalk so they can draw on the footpath. The Council branded it illegal graffiti. Tell that to a creative 4yo! Today's top story is a huge internet sensation: the world penis map. Talk about insecure men! My news - not much - I am winding down after a very hectic week.

Fri 25: I had hoped for a quiet day - but it was a busy one. Drama the minute I woke up. A component failure at the local telephone exchange meant I lost my internet and (VOIP) phone (landline). Unable to check my email - I used my mobile phone to contact my ISP (iiNet) and Tech Support was very prompt. The fault wasn't mine (thanks - I did all the obvious things - like cycling the modem etc). Fortunately - by the time I finished doing what I had to do and came back home - the problem was fixed. A tiring day - but I caught up with family and a few friends today.

Sat 26: R & R Day 1: I needed a good laugh today and found it here. A fairly productive day today. Got my washing (laundry) up to date. Briefly caught up with my grand-daughter Ada as she, Amy and Troy went out together. Cleaned the stove top - it's a gas stove and wasn't working properly - so I disassembled, cleaned and reassembled - and (shock!) - it works well now. I has visions of bits left over and begging Troy for help. He's good like that. The world celebrated Earth Hour this evening. For one hour - from 8.30pm - some of the world's population turned off (or dimmed) lights. It's just a token effort - but it shows that something can be done to cut energy usage. Witt had a special Buddhist ceremony to ask for Buddha's blessing for our Lotto coupons - but without success.

Sun 27: R & R Day 2. A late night last night - picked up Witt just before midnight and home to bed around 1.30am. We considered visiting the local Thai temple in Nollamara - but at 11am (today) Witt had not surfaced. It turns out he didn't sleep too well last night - and was fortunate to only have a 5 hour day (4pm to 9pm) at work today. I mowed the lawns while Troy repaired some of the reticulation. he also visited his daughter, Ada. Tonight - Barry and Troy have headed to Burswood Casino to try their luck.

Mon 28: R & R Day 3. A very unproductive day today. I was promised help by my daughter - but she failed to show. Very disappointed.

Tue 29: Today was going to be R & R Day 4 - but my plans became unstuck at short notice - and I had to return to reality (a decision backed by my Bank Manager). A hectic and tiring day. I went to sleep around 4pm and with a brief exception), slept solidly until 4am (Wednesday).

Wed 30: Up early - 4am (see yesterday) and felt ... well, fairly good. Another long day (headed out before sunrise - home after sunset) - but it's all in a good cause. Hopefully I can make it through the next 48 hours and then rest again. Tracey is due to spend time with me over the weekend - so we can catch up on my paperwork etc.

Thu 31: End of Q3 (2010-2011 Financial Year). Early start - long day. Fuel prices jumped 20c a litre - so ULP in Perth is now $1.50 a litre. The NRMA is tipping $2 a litre soon. That is scary! Perth motorists are lucky to have FuelWatch - government website so motorists are aware of the following day's fuel prices after 2pm each day - so they know if fuel is going up or down - after 6am the following day. Today is also the birthday of the world's most recognisable brands - in 1866 it debuted. See if you can place it - before clicking on the link. Still no sign of rain - for at least the next fortnight. Perth has had nearly 60 days without rain. Temperatures are also in the low 30s (Celcius) each day and high teens overnight.