Where did the Weekend go?

Gibbo got home from his NSW trip at 11pm Friday night. Again, I didn't hear him come in.

I had a quiet weekend that disappeared quickly. Yesterday I talked to both kids on skype then went to town to shop. We didn't need much in the grocery line but I did a little browsing to see what's around and to start collecting some Christmas gift ideas. Someone posted on facebook today that it's 56 days until Christmas; I'm not going to bother checking to see if they're correct; it just seems waaayy too close. I bought this for Drew's host sister. The young assistant in the trendy shop assures me that a 17 year old girl will love it. I hope so.

I also bought this - for $6.50! I thought it was perfect for our Christmas table this year. It will remind us of Drew having a white Christmas in Canada (not that we will need reminding but it will be nice to look at it and think of him). There was a second one there with a snowflake middle and mini moose around the edge. I might go back tomorrow and get it as well. At $6.50 you can't really go wrong can you? Unless you drop it I suppose!

I wasn't home for hardly ten minutes before I had to go to the office and have a look at end of month numbers. I could ramble on here and whinge about a lot of things but I won't except to say my vision of how this year was going to pan out is very different to how it's actually progressed. It's worth a post one day.

We had fish for tea again; seems to be a Saturday night menu. I picked lettuce, eschallot and radish from the garden  and combined them with carrot, mushroom, cucumber, tomato and feta cheese to make a fabulous salad.

I spent the evening a little anxious until I got a phone call from Meg...see the next post for that news.

I had a restless night and woke at 3.30 and again at 5.00 and got up. I seem to be developing a touch of insomnia; I hope it goes away soon 'cos it sucks.

Today didn't turn out as I would have liked although there was one very bright episode amongst a sheet of grey when the kids rang me (from the one phone!). I had to go back to the office to still work on the end of month balance - I went at 8 and was there until 2. The longer I was there the grumpier I got. If only people took care and paid attention to what they're doing, it wouldn't be this drama every month....and if I wasn't here they'd have to fix it themselves. In saying that, I do like numbers and I do like to balance things and I do like to seek out a problem and fix it - but not on a Sunday and not when simple errors create complex problems. I should have been an auditor. Rant, rant.

Gibbo went to cricket and got an early mark; they were all out for a rather paltry two figure sum, with his contribution being a single digit figure (higher than 1 but lower than 9!).

He mixed chook feed for me while I prepared Coco's meals for the week - fresh beef heart and simmered lamb liver, made up into frozen meal size portions. Then I went out and cleaned the chook water dishes and watered the two vege gardens (vine and permaculture). It helped me calm down and some of my crankypants attitude left me.

I went back to the office for an hour and a half to collect everything we need for a big week. Gibbo's Group (CQ and south Q) is heading to G to do budgets for next year. There's also a meeting of northern stations in MI. This is the first time we've got together and done then as a group (but individually for our own stations/feedlots); I'm feeling a bit nervous about the process - I have no idea why but that's just how I am.

I'm feeling myself getting drawn (sucked) more and more into the guts of "the business" - and as my intention this year was to try to gently extricate myself from "the business" I find myself trying to fight against a lot of things, to no avail really. That draining 6-8 weeks going out to W earlier in the year seemed to set the tone and the rest of the year has followed that pattern. Maybe 2012 will be different!

So now it's 11pm, a storm that went around us a little while ago has come back with a vengeance; and I'm so tired I just want to fall sideways on the couch and sleep; but I need to go have a shower and falling asleep on the couch is not a good idea 'cos I wake up in the really early hours, get into bed - and then can't sleep!

Goodnight!