At least it's over for another year!

Am at the Memphis with Gloria who is telling me what a wild girl she was. As a chirpy 75 yo I believe her. She did all the drugs, had all the men, married two husbands who were both hopeless, also had three daughters but now is happily single and still working. She is a born-again Christian to boot, but doesn't bang the drum at all so I gave a her a few of my confidences too. She is really very nice and was meeting her two mad girlfriends from Porirua for a coffee so she invited them here to meet me. They were also very charming and we chatted a lot.

After yesterday's simple Christmas meal which still gave me stomach pains, from the Indian ice-cream I believe, I survived yet another Christmas Day to read the Dom Post giving more bad news of several drownings. 

Makes me remember the days when I was an 18 y.o. beach inspector at Wamberal on the NSW Central Coast, and spent everyday getting sunburnt and sometimes saving the lives of a few reckless Frenchmen. Those were halcyon days for me when I had left school and was free and discovering life, losing my virginity and trying a new amazing French drink called Pernod, smelling of licorice and miraculously changing colour when water was added. My strong yearning for Paris and penchant for all things French had begun early and it remained with me all my life.

Bad news....

Saw this pedal car last night, Kiwi ingenuity, or madness?

Oriental Bay full-on.

Next year I plan mu Christmas is atTe Rauparaha Arena at Porirua organised by boss Helen Brookes which will see me do no more Christmas entertaining, or eating the wrong foods.

Brothel keeper in Paris extraordinare....Madame Claude.

This is the new relationship...both are trans people having a 'normal' baby.

Boxing Day mayhem at Memphiswhich had to close at noon, they ran out of milk!

Keri Hulme, my next Kiwi writer to read, 'The Bone People', that is, if I can struggle through its darkness which permeates a lot of Kiwi writing.

Three fishermen on the beautiful bay...

Leaving Memphis early I caught a good movie at the Paramount, 'Trumbo', the story of Hollywood's witch-hunt in the late forties and fifties when the US was paranoid about communism. David Cranston from 'Breaking Bad' was great, and Diane Ladd as his wife also good. A very interesting, if not really top movie as I felt the normally great Helen Mirren was badly miscast. I would give it only three stars.

Am now making plans for the next few days and may do a visit to Norsewood with Tom and Brent for two or maybe three nights. They would like me to come I am sure and it's a good break from the house with the kids at home all the time. But Gail from Malabar has just phoned and may be in Wellington on Monday, so there's a surprise visit!

The stars of Trumbo.

A late drive for a cuppa with Ron as I didn't catch up with him over Christmas. Ron always has news of planned holidays to Thailand and now India. It made me realise it is time I booked my ticket to Minneapolis in March for the Springtime ECK Seminar. After I recover from that trip I may well take two weeks off to Oz in the middle of winter to see my sister in Perth and my newly separated nephew.

That should nearly account for another year and I really don't know where this one went to?