I just had the most delicious supper (missed lunch so still 3 meals) of pensioners lamb. What is pensioners lamb you ask? lol, Assuming here you did, lol :-).
It is when you are there and they pack all the roughly off cut bits of the lamb from all the cuts, I choose packs with roughly cut loin and middle loin chops in them they are always thicker or thinner than the regular ones. (Oh I love the butchers bad days) lol. and the packs sell at $2.45 a kilo - I kid you not and taste as good as the full price perfectly cut chops. Pick them over for the best, packed up into meal quantities and I have lots of lamb chop meals frozen ahead and a scummy late dinner/supper with salad and a glass of red wine. Yes life is good. - forget the stuff that didn't go to plan I bought lamb at $2.45 a kilo and it's delicious.

Anything too thick for a grill can be used as a base for soups or stews. Just allow them to go cold and scoop the hardened fat off before eating.  Fantastic flavour for soup and healthier and greater economy than bought processed food.

Cooking good food from scratch is a skill that can save you money, keep you healthy, and make you and your family and friends happy. What I ve tried to do in this book is pick a whole load of meals that we all love to eat and break them down to make them as simple as possible. There are plenty of clear instructions and step-by-step pictures, so whether you re an accomplished cook or a complete beginner, you ll be able to enjoy cooking and achieve great results in the kitchen. This book is inspired by all the people I ve met who thought they could never and would never learn how to cook. I believe that good home cooking is one of the most essential, fundamental skills that every single person on this planet should have in order to look after themselves, their families, and their friends. This food revolution is all about people learning how to make a recipe, then teaching that recipe to their friends and family . . . if enough people do this, pretty soon everyone will be cooking. So cook something today, then PASS IT ON!

Once again letting people know I am not receiving any emails. I can access facebook messages and facebook for internet communication and little else.
I'm not negative.
So I am positive I am having nothing but problems for the past month with my internet service provider. Oh I have done everything. 2 x antennas. 2 service providers - Telstra and Optus. 3g and 4g options, no mountains between us and the huge Telstra tower that is only 12k away.
Short of driving into Shepparton and sitting within 1 k of the tower or moving what more can I do?
OK have 2 x 18 hour, happy it was working brief time periods over a month.
Upsetting part for me is I have submitted my manuscript and would love to receive a contract but the publisher would get their email bounced back at them if they even tried to contact me. Not good.

“Can't you give me brains?" asked the Scarecrow.
"You don't need them. You are learning something every day. A baby has brains, but it doesn't know much. Experience is the only thing that brings knowledge, and the longer you are on earth the more experience you are sure to get.”

― L. Frank Baum, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

These are the eleven pointers gerontologists claim are the key factors in successful aging.

1/ Never having abused alcohol. 

2/ Never having been a smoker.

3/ Getting enough Sleep.

4/ Being physically active.

5/ Eating a healthy diet.

6/ Maintaining a healthy active brain though learning.

7/ Positivity - maintaining a positive attitude.

8/ Reviewing anf Reflecting on your life.

9/ Staying connected.

10/ Generativity - Giving of oneself.

11/ Caring about the bigger picture.

I see areas where i score high here and areas where I have loads of room to improve. I will focus on improving those areas as i strive to continue to age well.

Darwin opens museum on bombing anniversary

Related Story: Bombing of Darwin: 70 years on

Governor-General Quentin Bryce has opened a new museum dedicated to the bombing of Darwin, remembering the suffering and sacrifice of those who witnessed the event.

On February 19, 1942, Japanese forces launched air raids on Darwin, staged in two waves, killing at least 243 people and injuring up to 400.

Ms Bryce and US Ambassador Jeffrey Bleich joined Northern Territory Chief Minister Paul Henderson and dignitaries at the New Defence of Darwin Experience at Darwin's East Point.

The $10 million museum includes digital sound and light displays and newly-exhibited relics from Darwin's war years.

Ms Bryce says she is honoured to be part of a such a special occasion.

"I am thrilled and delighted to join the citizens of Darwin on this very important national occasion," she said.

"It is indeed an honour to be here with you.

"Seventy years ago the tranquillity of Darwin was rocked. The unthinkable was happening - our country was under enemy attack.

"Certainly the scale and human toll of the war in the territory did not fill a large part of the history books."

Ms Bryce says all Australians should take time out this weekend to pause and reflect on those who lost their families and homes.

"The 19th February, 1942 is integral to our ongoing story as a nation. We fought for our freedom with courage, grit and determination," she said.

"This anniversary helps us remember those we helped shape our future as a strong and self-reliant nation actively involved in world affairs."

Mr Bleich says the museum is a testament to those in the Northern Territory who have worked so hard to honour the past.

"We renew our commitment - Australians and Americans together - never to allow another invasion on our soil," he said.

The city of Darwin will continue with a program of events to commemorate the anniversary of the bombing.

The Prime Minister and Opposition Leader are due to arrive this evening for a commemorative ball before attending the official commemoration at Darwin's Cenotaph tomorrow morning.

Books » Travel » Country Guides » Australia & NZ
New Zealand By Charles Rawlings-Way

This is the time of year when many seniors head to New Zealand. The weather is beautiful and the scenery coming into autumn is spectacular. Chances are there will be some discounted tours and air flights about now also as this isn't a peak holiday period.

Lonely Planet's team of authors has island hopped the Bay of Islands, immersed themselves in Rotorua's proud Maori culture, kayaked Abel Tasman's pristine bays and cruised the magnificent Milford Sound - as well as exploring everything in between. With all that research and more, Lonely Planet New Zealand is your key to the best possible Kiwi experience.

Lonely Planet guides are written by experts who get to the heart of every destination they visit. This fully updated edition is packed with accurate, practical and honest advice, designed to give you the information you need to make the most of your trip.

In This Guide:

Full Coverage - hidden secrets plus all the don't-miss attractions
Activities of every kind - from abseiling to zorbing
Unique Green Index to help make your travels ecofriendly

Books » Travel » Country Guides » Australia & NZ
Lonely Planet Tasmania By Brett Atkinson, Gabi Mocatta

Tasmania is a definite overachiever when it comes to natural beauty. Brett Atkinson, Lonely Planet Writer
Our Promise
You can trust our travel information because Lonely Planet authors visit the places we write about, each and every edition. We never accept freebies for positive coverage, and you can rely on us to tell it like we see it.
Inside This Book
2 authors
45 maps
300 km of iconic Great Walks
2 Tassie Tigers (stuffed)
Inspirational photos
Clear, easy-to-use maps
Pull-out maps of Tassie
Walking feature
Comprehensive planning tools
In-depth background

 Books » Travel » Country Guides » Australia & NZ
Camps Australia Wide 6 Perfect By Phenell Phil (Created by) Includes HEMA Road Atlas, Free camps and rest areas.

There are many parts of Australia where there are no available paid tourist parks and you need a book such as this one.

This book or own of it's variations as it does come in a spiral bound version as well, is an essential inclusion in the Australian camper and caravaner's supplies.  The book is not just a guide to camping spots for certain areas, but encompasses the whole of Australia, showing rest areas, free camps, community camps, station stays, remote caravan parks, state forests, state parks and reserves.

I hope the Australian government and travel insurance companies move quickly to implement a rescue package now that Air Australia has gone bust stranding hundreds of people in Phuket and Honolulu, and placing some 4000 who are holding holding booked tickets in limbo.

Air Australia goes down the worst way, lying to the media and stranding hundreds of passengers | Pla blogs.crikey.com.au

Air Australia has failed in the worst possible way short of killing people. It has gone bust stranding people in Phuket, placing those holding booked tickets in limbo, and being grubby with the truth.

From the Herald Sun Newspaper:- News for Air AustraliaThe Canberra TimesThousands stranded overseas as Air Australia placed in administration
Herald Sun‎ - Air Australia placed in administration All Air Australia flights have been cancelled after the small airline went into voluntary administration

Monet Refuses The Operation

Doctor, you say there are no haloes
around the streetlights in Paris
and what I see is an aberration
caused by old age, an affliction.
I tell you it has taken me all my life
to arrive at the vision of gas lamps as angels,
to soften and blur and finally banish
the edges you regret I don't see,
to learn that the line I called the horizon
does not exist and sky and water,
so long apart, are the same state of being.
Fifty-four years before I could see
Rouen cathedral is built
of parallel shafts of sun,
and now you want to restore
my youthful errors: fixed
notions of top and bottom,
the illusion of three-dimensional space,
wisteria separate
from the bridge it covers.
What can I say to convince you
the Houses of Parliament dissolves
night after night to become
the fluid dream of the Thames?
I will not return to a universe
of objects that don't know each other,
as if islands were not the lost children
of one great continent. The world
is flux, and light becomes what it touches,
becomes water, lilies on water,
above and below water,
becomes lilac and mauve and yellow
and white and cerulean lamps,
small fists passing sunlight
so quickly to one another
that it would take long, streaming hair
inside my brush to catch it.
To paint the speed of light!
Our weighted shapes, these verticals,
burn to mix with air
and change our bones, skin, clothes
to gases. Doctor,
if only you could see
how heaven pulls earth into its arms
and how infinitely the heart expands
to claim this world, blue vapor without end.

Lisel Mueller