I wrote this once and my geriatric computer couldn’t handle working just one more second while it saved and so I’m now writing it again. Hopefully as well as before.

The weekend was unseasonably warm and, not being fools, we decided to drop the normal housework and take full advantage of being able to wear sandals in January. Even my cold-blooded husband (who is not troubled by the existence of any blood pressure whatsoever) was out in his shirt sleeves.

So Saturday hit and we overslept until almost nine, rushed out the door to get Ferg to her prescription refill appointment at the vets’ (where they charged us $50 to affirm her membership in the canine species), do some quick shopping and rush home for a quick lunch.

Then we mosied out to Flatrock to shoot pictures of erratics for a project I’m working on form October’s show. We had a whale of a time and Katherine enjoyed her “Rock Walk” thoroughly. Then it was home again to supper, for which we had my sister Tamar and her husband Adam over. After we bundled the munchkin into bed, we all settled into a game of Settlers of Catan which, if you haven’t played it yet, is a wonderful experience still before you!

I loathe board games with an overblown passion, but I thoroughly enjoy this one. It’s basically a colonisation game, in which you build roads, settlements, cities and trade routes that you use to acquire ressources with which to build more. There are pirates, trades, knights and all sorts of other fun. It’s a great way to spend an evening with friends. We played the Cities & Knights and Seafarers variation, which adds a whole new dimension to the fun.

Sunday started all wrong, for no reason other than that I was in a rotten mood. After prodding for a reason, I discerned that I was feeling a profound need for some solitude, so Wikket and I took the car and headed for Bauline, which is about as solitary as you can get on the Northern Avalon while still being near a town.

We climbed up the hill on the south side of Bauline Harbour and, finding lots of ankle-busting rocks and no view (it was foggy), decided to climb down and check out the other side of the harbour, which appeared to have once been inhabited but was now nothing but fields and rock walls.

After mucking about in that area and following the trail uphill for a bit, we settled for taking pictures and sitting while looking at the ocean. A successful trip. We then headed back home, where I played with ink and paint for a bit and waited the return of John, Moss, Ferg and Katherine, who had taken the Father Troy Path through Torbay Harbour to Gallows Cove.

We all ate lunch in better spirits and were just contemplating how nice it would be to see some friends when the phone rang. The Bauers were heading out hiking and would we like to come? No question! We got ready and had just enough time to enjoy the rainbow before they appeared. We all went up to The Meadows and hiked as far as Geoff Stirling’s house, before bailing due to failing light. The river had been high and we didn’t want to make a tricky crossing in the dark with kids. The side trail came out on Granda’s lane, a grass cart track that hooks up to Marine Drive. We all trotted back to the house, had juice and a snack and I had just enough time to run to the grocery store and grab a bit of food before it closed. A supper of tortellini pasta salad, a cup of coffee or three and bath, followed by a good movie rounded out the day nicely.

Could you ask for any better??