Where are you spending Christmas and New Year holidays?
I am spending mind on a sofa overlooking a wheat field in the Gouldburn Valley of Victoria.

I did do some exercise,to make up for a day of reading and writing and completing a book I have been trying to read for the past two months. I exercised as much as  I can do, that's not as much as I would like, but it is better than not trying to do any.  I always try to be positive even when faced with old injuries playing up. 

I told Reg to hide the Bailey's chocolates we got for Christmas while I was out of the room. lol. (Oh yes, I have had some :-).
I will have another go at exercise latter. Have another interesting book to read.

I am loving having a chance to catch up and finish a few books, both fiction and non-fiction, I have had 'on the go' for ages.

_This Christmas I am spending it with an extended family. My own and all the characters in the novel I am writing.

Where are you off to this Christmas? Will it be an orlando hotel or a holiday at home?

My Christmas will be celebrated by sharing the completion of my new novel with my family.

I did an entire blog filled with images and stories of all my characters - then as I have a weebly pro account I made all those pages private other than to a proof reader, as they contain 'spoilers'. 
When I write I can see and I know all my characters - they are more real to me than my neighbours and friends, lol, they have become a part of my family - I am that close to them - I know them and they know me. Our relationship is intimate
I think about them as much as I think about real life - they are in there - part of my life.  I am beyond needing to structure anything about them other than to edit what I've written about these real (to me) people. . I hope my readers think they are real too.

_EXERCISE

Walking outdoors 20 minutes

A great low impact cardio exercise to boost health and fitness
Instructions
When walking at a brisk pace, you'll be able to talk but you'll find it difficult to continue a normal conversation without having to catch your breath.

The distance you can cover in this time depends on how your fitness is progressing. At this pace, maintaining a conversation will become a little difficult. I am spending so much time writing my novel, I know if I don't begin to focus on being more active I will be a late bloomer needing to buy plus size maternity clothes to find anything to fit me.

Technique tips

• Maintain a good walking posture - keep your shoulders back and relaxed, and tummy muscles (core) pulled in.
• Take nice big steps - stride as wide as possible.
• Swing your arms - it helps to raise your heart rate and uses your upper body muscles.
• Keep your breathing controlled - take deep steady breathes to get as much oxygen as possible.
  
• This session burns 79 Calories - 330 Kilojoules

Walker's stretch 1  x 1 rounds
I suggest you seek the advice of a good physio therapist to design stretches for you, suitable for your own individual needs.

Tai chi wraps 
0.5 minutes each side

Windmill stretch  0.5 minutes each side
Spinal stretch  3 repetitions.

Hip flexor stretch  0.5 minutes each side
Calf stretch 0.5 minutes each side

_
Minilab X-Terra 70, with 2 Coils,



Stereo Headphones,



COMPLETE Metal Detector KIT


X-TERRA 70 can be used for gold prospecting as well as for coin & treasure hunting, simply by switching between available pre-programmed modes. Thanks to Gold Prospecting and Coin & Treasure Modes you get a gold detector plus coin, treasure & relic detector all in one!

 

This Minelab X-terra 70 is a coin, relic and gold detector, complete prospecting Kit. It is identical to the latest model other than for not having a back light.

 

X-TERRA 70 is especially configured for gold prospecting, with advanced Iron Mask Discrimination and Ground Balance functions, which are perfect for detecting in mineralised goldfield ground. 

 

This pre loved but little used and functioning as new metal detector is a very complete kit.  It originally cost us $1,150 and we added on a lot of additional value with the extra coil and professional stereo headphones.  

Then having invested in the X-Terra kit of my dreams, lol, I took to novel writing and my husband to fishing and that was the end of our plans to take this to the gold fields for precious metal or the beach to scavenge for coins.

This comes complete with the M 11358 Coil & an H 06011 Coil to allow you to search for metals of your choice and the read out will guide you in what sort of metal you have found.

Find relics, coins and gold, plus stereo head phones, book and DVD to teach you how use it. Light weight, this is easy to use.

If you pick it up we will leave it assembled in one piece and show you how easy it is to use or the shank can come apart easily for easy postage in the box and the manual will guide in the easy reassembly.

Machine operates perfectly and has had little use.

The specialised Prospecting Mode has improved sensitivity making the detector more sensitive to small target signals. The Prospecting Mode can be used in highly mineralised, 'difficult' areas. The high frequency Double-D coil is the one we have mounted on the X-TERRA 70. It is great at at handling most conditions. The Prospecting Mode is ideal not only when searching for gold nuggets but also for small relics and some types of jewellery.

Packed with features and offering you the ultimate in flexibility, the X-TERRA 70 is a superior detector that is perfect for when you want an easy to learn and simple to operate detector that finds you gold.

It comes complete with both a DVD and booklet

and our

Satisfaction Guarantee.



I will post this by registered Australia Post as soon as your payment clears in our PayPal account.


Discounted
REGISTERED POSTAGE  I accept PayPal or cash pick up from the studio at Mooroopna, by appointment.  Throwing this book of tips in to help you get started in finding where to search for GOLD.


I have friends who find several nuggets every weekend at Dunolly in Victoria and a friend who paid for a caravan with gold he found using his X-Terra 70 and now spends six months every year searching and finding gold at Leonora in Western Australia.  After the recent floods in Australia, a lot of gold has been brought back up near the surface, making it findable for the hobby prospector who does not wish to dig deep. 


With the price of gold at $1,700. an ounce as I type, what better time could there be to begin searching for the precious metal?






 Don't forget the potential of searching the beach. :-)

I have some very unique auctions closing tonight.


Art & Craft, Vintage Investment and a great Gold Detector Kit

gray-nomad | eBay www.ebay.com.au eBay: gray-nomad

http://www.ebay.com.au/sch/gray-nomad/m.html?item=130602542844&sspagename=STRK%3AMESELX%3AIT&_trksid=p4340.l2562
_

_Late springtime in Victoria is a beautiful time to go picnicking.  Reg and I have being doing this a lot around the lakes and rivers of the northern Goulburn district.
On the western side of Melbourne the is The Age Harvest Picnic at Werribee Park,with  food and wine producers from all over Victoria will gathering in the magnificent grounds of Werribee Park to sample, showcase and sell …well click on this link to discover more
The Age Harvest Picnic
When:27 Nov 2011 9:00am-5:00pmCost:$25 adults / $20 concessions / Kids free Booking info:See organiser's website.

I have reopened my horse art gallery today, hope you can pop in for a browse.

_Australians love their mountains and winter playground of the high country with the summer of wildflowers, snow gums and cattleman's huts to explore on bush walks. We do know that the mountains of most large continents make our highest mountain, Kosciusko look like a pimple by comparison, but we love Kosciusko and the high plains just the same .

If you would like to see the high country of a beautiful place like Canada, you could do not better than to time your tour to coincide with their summer and Canada day. 

Right now and though summer excluding extreme fire risk days is a great time to visit the high plains of Bogong, in Victoria,
Community Event - Grand Opening of Bogong Visitor Facilities & Weston Hut

Celebrate the opening of the Bogong Alpine Way visitor facilities including the rebuilt Westons Hut and enjoy a Ranger guided walk on the Wallace-Cope Heritage Trail. …

When:19 Nov 2011 11:00am
Cost:Free
Booking info:RSVP for shuttle service is required. Call 13 1963.

_ Lerderderg State Park is a great place to explore and it is only a short distance out of Melbourne.  This is a place i went to paint and Reg took the children hiking though the gorges.  Quite large, it comprises  of 14,250 hectares  stretched out over 20 kilometres between Bacchus Marsh and Blackwood.

It is a part of  the Great Dividing Range, the Lerderderg River has cut a 300 metre deep gorge that is worth exploring. Walking is the best way to get to know the park - there are several tracks for a range of walks from short, easy strolls to strenuous overnight hikes for experienced bushwalkers.

* Other activities include camping, swimming, rock-climbing, fishing and scenic driving.

* The river is popular with anglers. Blackfish and Brown Trout are the most commonly caught fish.

Camping is allowed at O'Brien's Crossing and elsewhere, although there are no facilities.

For the latest information on track closures and park access, please see the Parks Victoria website. Be bushfire smart wherever you visit during fire seasons.

Underwater To Get Out Of The Rain A Love Affair with the Sea

By Trevor Norton


Format:Electronic book text
This is the beautifully told tale of Norton's growing love of the sea, from family holidays in Whitley Bay as a boy, to his first over zealous attempts at diving. All that we know and love of the British seaside weaves throughout this funny, nostalgic and richly told memoir. Fortune telling gypsies found on crumbling promenades, lighthouses standing to attention, fishing villages giving way to arcades and brass bands and sand-playing in the bracing chill of a British summer. Throughout, Norton introduces us to a eclectic mix of sea-loving characters all of whom have helped to inform and shape his own journey to becoming a marine biologist. Like the early guides to the seashore by the Naturalist Philip Henry Gosse as much a part of the myth and history of the British coastline as fishermen's tales of mermaids and eerie monsters beneath the waves. This is both a history and a memoir of an enduring, if at times perplexing, love of the sea that won't fail to resonate with all who have felt the pull of the shores.

About the Author
Trevor Norton is Emeritus Professor of Marine Biology at the University of Liverpool and Director of the Port Erin Marine Laboratory on the Isle of Man. He has authored over 150 scientific publications and books.

To purchase this book at a discounted price, click link below