And another thing ...
:: After a week in Perth of watching the odd bit of Olympic hoo-ha in the same timezone as Beijing, it's odd to be watching it over here with the sixteen (?)-hour time diff. They've scheduled the finals of events so they're on in the morning in Beijing, because this is prime telly time in the US. That means they're putting on all the heats on the afternoon, and finals the next mornings. We think it 'mazing.
Dave and I are loving the synchronised swimming, but we still feel that it is in skeet-shooting that our real Olympic potential lies. Its appeal is based very strongly on the idea that it is a sport we feel we can practise from the verandah at Eagle Bay, possibly from a Jason recliner or two.
:: It was fab to be back in Perth, albeit for the worst possible reason. I loved being close again to all my mates — or at least those I could whiz round to see in the short time I had. When I get back, I'm going to be such a good friend, I promise. We'll get those Bitches' Breakfasts going again, and there'll be lots of weekends down at the bay ...
:: Iron Man, Kung Fu Panda and The Bank Job were among the movies on offer on Qantas in-flight this month in both directions, so it's a shame that I wasted some of my wide-awake hours on The Other Boleyn Girl. It was a fizzer compared to the book, and the role of Henry VIII didn't exactly stretch Eric Bana. But the telly program line-up was great, especially the short film by Martin Scorsese of a Rolling Stones concert in NY (or was it Chicago?). Boy, are they still really, really hot, judging by this show. Andrew Denton did a great interview with Jerry Seinfeld and there were a string of really good Parkinsons to watch (Parkie and Denton are always good on a plane — bite-sized entertainment). There was a doco about a year in the life of JK Rowling as she finished the last Harry Potter. She came across as surprisingly self-effacing and much more vulnerable than I had thought — I really liked her a lot, especially when I saw her Christmas shopping in Tiffany's and elsewhere buying up big on divine shoes. there was also a useful UK show about what cosmetics really work and what to buy (conditioners for colour-treated hair; face-creams with SPF; and creams with vitamins C and E which are as efficacious in combating free-radical damage as the more high-falluting new discoveries like C60).
I mention all this only because I imagine lots of you in Australia will have seen all this recently on TV.
:: I've got lots of plans, and ideas for projects, for when we are back in Australia, and thank you to all my friends who encouraged the odd ramblings I came up with while I was over there.
:: I miss my luggage. David's laptop and all my toiletries are in the missing suitcases, along with my entire supply of underwear (clean and not), my camera and even the bloody novel I'm reading. Qantas assures us these bags are on their way and will be delivered right to our door tomorrow. Let's hope so.
:: Too much good eating in Perth — I'm back on the bike from tomorrow ...