Posted in Fiction

Can’t believe we are in autumn now.

Posted on by TravellinPenguin

I’ve been a bit fatigued the last couple of weeks but think I’m coming out of it now. Autumn is my favourite season so looking forward to getting out into some colours and maybe a country town or two with my camera.

Such a fun little book.

I finished Helen Garner’s book The Season. I am not into Aussie rules footy much but I love Helen Garner’s writing. I listened to the audible in the evening while I worked on puzzles and she reads her own work. She has a wonderful reading voice and her intonations and sometimes sarcastic wit comes through. I laughed out loud a few times.

The Amazon blurb:

It’s footy season in Melbourne, and Helen Garner is following her grandson’s under-16s team. She not only goes to every game (give or take), but to every training session too, shivering on the sidelines at dusk, fascinated by the spectacle.

She’s a passionate Western Bulldogs fan (with an imperfect grasp of the rules) who loves the epic theatre of AFL football. But her devotion to the under-16s offers her something else. This is her chance to connect with her youngest grandchild, to be close to him before he rushes headlong into manhood. To witness his triumphs and defeats, to fear for his safety in battle, to gasp and to cheer for his team as it fights for a place in the finals.

I enjoyed this book so much and the relationship between her and her grandsons is wonderful. Helen is 80 now and the conversations between her and her teen grandsons were touching, funny and quite respectful most of the time. The boys appreciate her so much. It is a short read and you won’t go wrong with this book if you love Garner’s writing or love footy. She managed to make footy sound quite exciting even for me.

A story of grief and recovery.

I think I mentioned I finished Memorial Days by Geraldine Brooks. Geraldine is doing a book tour now in Australia but I am so disappointed she misses Tasmania this trip. She has been here twice before and the last time she filled the Theatre Royal when launching her book Horse. I see she does an interview with our prime minister so at least I can listen to that. That is a bit different for her but she is a journalist after all so it might be interesting. She is probably more riveting to listen to than he is (chuckle).

I have now sent this book off to a very dear friend whose husband sadly passed away recently and I will enjoy talking to her about the book when I visit in a few weeks. More on my quick trip to Sydney and Port Macquarie to see two of my dearest friends.

I am currently reading Death of a Rook for book group meeting in March. It is authored by Kate Atkinson. I am enjoying it quite a lot. It is a mystery in the style of the golden detective writing of the past. It begins very much like an Agatha Christie book. I will have more on this after our meeting.

Last week I spent some time focusing on some street photography. I am trying to think of small projects with my photography as it is better to have a goal for the time spent then to wander around aimlessly. I did a couple of street portraits then looked for little stories. That was fun and I will share those here.

Our lovely Ollie

We have been spending extra time with our dog Ollie. He has ear infections and allergies and his new meds clashed a bit with his regular allergy med. He became lethargic and seemed quite depressed. He took himself off to be alone and wouldn’t interact. We stopped the new medication as the infection wasn’t a problem anymore and he is back to himself again. We are probably taking him to the dog beach today. He loves that. I might tag a photo of that later so you can share his joy with Peannie, his sister

I need to catch up on some post reading as I haven’t checked lately who has written what lately but I intend to go back and see what I have missed. I have a habit of withdrawing from the world here and there and though my psychologist said that is one of the main signs of autism I understand it now. I need to recharge and let my batteries drain then the cycle continues. I always thought it was MS fatigue but evidently it isn’t. It is so weird to learn all of this at my advanced age. If only….I say.

Well, not to linger. Enjoy the photos and I’ll be back soon. Hope all of you enjoy this coming week. We never know what will pop up do we?

What happens on the streets of Hobart 🌻

Tourists
This person has the vibe.

Trying to work out what bus to take.

No I didn’t take this photo. This is your laugh of the week. Photographer unknown but I love it.
Let’s go to the beach!
Unknown's avatar

Author:

I live a retired life in Tasmania, Australia. I love books, travel, animals, photography, motor biking and good friends. I indulge in all these activities with the little Travellin' Penguin who has now shared five continents with me. We love book shops, photography walks and time with friends as all our family is in USA and Canada. I enjoy visitors to my blog so hope you'll stop by.

26 thoughts on “Can’t believe we are in autumn now.”

  1. Thank you for sharing your month with us. Seems like a good month, and I hope Ollie is better now. Beautiful photos as always. Just love the ‘laughy’ one.

    I have heard so much good things about Geraldine Brooks, but never read anything by her. I have one book on my TBR; Nine Parts of Desire, which should be interesting.

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  2. I like autumn too, although we are about to hit spring soon and it can’t come too soon as the winter has been so cold. Love your street photography – I always wonder about the people who you capture on film (or the modern equivalent!!)

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  3. We’ve just had a run of end-of-summer heat here in the Blue Mountains, but last night as I was walking home from work, a cool change drifted in with the mist. And today have woken up to a lovely cool autumn day. I have more energy just thinking about it! The older I get the more draining I find hot days.

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    1. I agree. I can’t cope with the heat at all much anymore. Heat and MS don’t work either as damage to the central nervous system means the electrical impulses can’t be conducted correctly and one gets numbness or little zaps. Just annoying though I’m luckier than most with MS.

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    2. Haha Brona … the older I get the more cold weather makes me miserable. I don’t love extreme heat but it doesn’t make me curl up inside like the cold does.

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      2. I used to suffer during the winter months too, but the last two summers have been very hard to handle. Perimenopause is to blame, of course. I get a hot flush on a hot day and have no way of cooling down and end up with heat exhaustion. So bring on autumn I say!

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        1. You’ve had a tough time of it Brona. Mine was pretty uneventful. The end result though is that I’m warmer. I never wear bed socks now, whereas before, I wore them most of the year. I can’t think of any other reason except menopause. It’s not a bad outcome!

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  4. I can’t wait to read the Garner. I don’t love footy but I love her. It makes me laugh really that she loves footy so much. But the thing I’m most looking forward to is how she writes the grandparent-grandchild relationship.

    Poor Ollie. As someone who has suffered from itchiness all my life with chronic eczema, I feel for any creature that suffers. No wonder he got depressed.

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    1. Love your pics. Your Vibe hotel one made me laugh.

      I missed the Geraldine Brooks event here this week because I went to the launch of an exhibition of photojournalism from the Sydney Morning Herald. It was curated by Mike Bowers and he did the launch discussion. It was so interesting. I’m sure you would’ve loved it.

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      1. I bet it was interesting but sad Geraldine missed Tassie this trip. I wonder if she’ll move back to Australia, maybe even part of the year as it was her husband who said there was no way he would move here. Maybe once her kids are older though by then she may have grandkids to anchor her still in the USA. Who knows?! I had to wait awhile for someone appropriate to walk under that Vibe sign in the photo. Most had quite boring clothes on. The person I finally chose was about the best I could get. Hobart is quite conservative in their dress most of the time.

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    2. Ollie is okay now but I know what you mean. I get eczema on my hands at times and it is a nuisance. Garner does both the football and the relationships very well I thought. I did enjoy it.

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  5. I’m glad Autumn has finally reached you. My favorite is winter, then autumn, then spring. 

    Sorry to hear Geraldine Brooks isn’t hitting you up this tour. 

    Love the street photography photos and cutie Ollie. 

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  7. I know it’s not the same as the allergy that Ollie has, but you might be interested to know how we deal with Amber’s seasonal allergy. We know when it’s back because there are little clumps of fur on the floor and sometimes I catch her scratching.

    It’s off to the vet for a shot in the bum, but really, what makes the difference is the bathing regime advised by the vet. Once a week I bathe her — with Alloveen pet shampoo but not every time because shampoo dries out their fur. The important thing is to use QV baby oil as a leave-in conditioner whether she’s had a shampoo or not. (10 ml to 1ml of warm water.) It makes her coat beautifully soft and silky but that’s not why I’m doing it. It soothes her skin and stops her from scratching.

    I love the photo of the Asian tourists… such anxiety! (I presume they’re just hailing a taxi?)

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    1. His allergies affect his ears and front feet only. I soak his feet with his doggie medicated shampoo I get from vet. He’s not scratching now. He had a bit of infection and the anti biotics cleared it up. The tourists you mention walked past me on the footpath as I waited for the bus. They were all talking and just pointing at stuff. There are a few statues in the area so maybe that.

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