I hope everyone is well and adjusting to the speed to which this year is going. Lots happening here so will break it down into manageable paragraphs.
BOOKS: Reading Shaun Bythell’s third diary of his Wigtown, Scottish bookstore. He sure seems to fit the profile of some of the curmudgeonly book sellers I met while travelling in the UK a few years ago. The characters he writes about are good fun to follow and having read both Diary of a Bookseller and Confessions of a Bookseller, I continue to enjoy this very much.
I am also reading Lessons In Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus. Her story revolves around women trying to pursue a decent career as scientists in the 1950s (I believe…60’s?) as they are very much discriminated against by the male scientists. I always find that so frustrating but I am enjoying the story.
Fullers book club begins in April. We were sent the book list for the first 4 months and I am very much waiting for it. Our first read to be discussed is Ernest Hemingway’s book, The Sun Also Rises. I have read a couple of his others but never that one as it has bull fighting in it which I really dislike. So I will skip over that part. It is not a very long book so should be able to polish it off. I have always wanted to read more of him.
TRAVEL: We are finally going to go somewhere out of the country. Not that far but really looking forward to it. Two weeks of a road trip in the south island of New Zealand. We have previously travelled the north island so really looking forward to photographing this area. More to come.
CULTURE: I saw David Sedaris at the Theatre Royal and he was hilarious. Very modest and very funny. He is such a keen observer of everyday life and makes the most mundane laughable. The theatre was packed and everyone stamped feet, applauded and yelled out when he conversed directly with the audience with house lights up. What a fun night out. People here are always happy when performers come to Tasmania as most forget about our little state down here but more enthusiastic audiences will not be found when someone does choose to visit.
NEW OBSESSION: Since I left motorbiking and struggle as I miss it so much I needed something to replace the interest. A few years ago I had a metal detector that was a very low end model. I had no group support or idea of what could be done with it and it went by the wayside. Well I have dived into the earth big time now. Not reading much but learning all the settings on this Minelab Equinox 800. Thank goodness for You Tube. Have linked up with some very supportive Tassie and Victorian detectorists. I put up a post on our local Good Karma fb page and have several offers to detect some very old properties locally. I have a large bush park behind us here that supposedly had a building on it that was burned in the 1967 fires. I have found several interesting items, including a pre decimal coin and name brands on a canister and brewery that are no longer in business. I research each item as much as possible and the detectorist groups help with item description and cheer each other on. I really enjoy it. It also works on balance, stepping on a shovel with one foot 🤠, knee strength, getting up and down and muscle action, digging through baked clay and sandstone. More on that as it happens.
PHOTOGRAPHY: Continues to go well. I begin attendance this coming week at a second club I’ve not attended before and looking forward to meeting the men and women in it who seem to be quite active.
FITNESS: Still lifting those weights, walking a lot especially detecting beaches. Diet going well, lost 2 kilos simply by removing all sweet food from house except Frosty Fruit icy poles that help deal with the late night cravings of ice cream, biscuits and chocolate.
Hopefully this brings you up to date with Tassie life. Let me know what you do when you aren’t reading books. For fun, of course. All the best.
A Penguin's Journey- Books, Travel, Photography 
That’s so cool that you got to go to the Sedaris event!
LikeLiked by 1 person
He is so very funny and very humble. He also always recommends another book by an author he enjoys at his appearances. He couldn’t speak highly enough of Andrew Greer’s books Less and Less is more.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I loved the Bonnie Garmus book – wait until you get to the chapter about the carving knife! it had me laughing out loud. Metal detectoring sounds like fun, and you get the benefit of walking, so bonus point. Enjoyed your update.
LikeLike
I love Bythell’s first book. Your post got me to download his second one, which is available on Nextory. I also love Sedari’s books. Must have been great to see him in person.
I like your attitude as regards your motor bike. There comes a time when we can no longer do all the things we did. It is so great that you look for something else to do instead. Metal detectors sounds very interesting.
LikeLike
Very envious of a trip to NZ. We’re finally starting to talk about where we might like to go next, out of Australia and when. But our combined work/volunteer schedules atm allow only a very small window for travel together. Maybe 2024. I’ll live vicariously through your pics instead 🙂
LikeLike
Sounds like you’re keeping good and busy, Pam, and the detectoring sounds like a fun hobby! Apart from reading, I do arty/crafty/journaling stuff which I share with my BFF on our weekly zooms. When I get the time to do this (r/l has been manic recently) I enjoy it and it’s very relaxing!
LikeLike
I love art crafty, journalling things too but sadly don’t do much. It is a good winter activity especially.
LikeLiked by 1 person
My husband’s become addicted to the unbelievable number of TV programmes about Australians looking for gold, opals and other gems. We are now armchair experts on metal detecting. Looks like fun! Especially if you’re not fixated on making your fortune.
LikeLiked by 1 person
There have been a fair few of those shows on air recently.
LikeLike
There have. Maybe you could join one of them; your chance for fame and fortune. You have to have a certain feeling for melodrama and be willing to find numerous reasons why you won’t reach your target and your season is over. Again.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Finding lots of bottle caps does not make for riveting viewing, haha.
LikeLike
You’d be surprised. More scope for claiming you’ll be ruined if you don’t find any gold soon. “This won’t cover our diesel” is a common line, having driven a huge piece of equipment several hundred miles into the middle of nowhere.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Good, short to the point reviews, Pam 💖
LikeLike
Gosh, I had to rack my brains to think what I’ve been doing apart from books, but I’ve come up with a few:
I *finally* celebrated a milestone birthday from last year with friends. Years ago I’d bought a bottle of Grange for this birthday and planned to share it at a nice restaurant with another couple but what with one thing and another (their catastrophes and ours) we could not manage to do it until now. So that was very nice.
And I also had an outing with a friend to see the public art in our municipality. The council had put together a guide and we drove around checking out the artworks neither of us had ever seen. It was a beautiful day, and we had a great time.
Plus, we had one of our regular Lockdown Ladies catchups. During the lockdowns we ladies who hadn’t known each before met during the permitted exercise and we promised ourselves that we would have afternoon tea together when we were allowed to. We’ve been doing this on and off ever since. So that’s nice too!
LikeLiked by 1 person
The day of looking at art sounds lovely. I enjoy hearing what people get up to with their interests.
LikeLiked by 1 person
When I was a kid, I was sitting in a park and found a farthing between the blades of grass. I don’t know when they stopped being legal tender. I think halfpennies stayed right up to the 1960s. That’s about the full extent of my metal detection, though I could do with a hobby which forced me to walk.
LikeLike
Yes I do have a half penny. I think they stopped making them in early 60s but could be wrong. Will need to look that up in my coin book.
LikeLike
You mean you found a 1951 penny? (I think it’s a penny though I didn’t look really closely at the pic.) What’s this pre-decimal coin business!?
Good on you for going to NZ. I’m having trouble getting Mr Gums there. Not exotic enough – so instead we keep coming to Melbourne, haha! I’ve been there but in 1973! Keen to go again.
So, what I’ve been doing has been preparing to downsize in Canberra. That’s starting in late March. And visiting family in Melbourne. February is big birthday month – three, husband, son, and now grand-daughter who has just turned 1.
LikeLike
Pre decimal coins mean coins used before Australia went to dollars and cents. Metal detector speak-haha. It is a King George the Sixth, 1951 penny. I’m looking forward to some photography there. Such beautiful scenery. I try to get rid of things in our home but no plan to leave our house. Not with 4 pets.
LikeLike