Probably won't be posting much while I'm here in Perth, because this trip I won't be near the internet much. Here's a round-up of how things went.
MondayDidn't get down to Karl's until almost 10pm. I was delayed until late in the day by a bank stuff-up (my balance went from $40 to -$20 to $20 again). Went straight to sleep almost as soon as I got there.
TuesdayKarl's an early riser which is good - got to the Domestic Airport by 8:05am. The flight wasn't due board until 8:45am so I had a bit of time on my hands. What I should have done was go shopping before I got to the airport. After the trainfare (only $10 for me) I had $10 on me and should have got a drink and some snacks. As it was, I was stuck on a
five hour flight on Virgin Blue, where you have to pay for all the drinks and snacks, and $9.90 if you want to watch the entertainment after the first five minutes. It was a l-o-n-g flight, even with the magazines I read.
The plane got in 15 minutes late and Mum and Thelma Gunnell met me at reception. Got the baggage, got the shuttle bus back to Thelma's car (which was parked for some reason in the long term car park) and got out. We went to Centrepoint at Midland before going to Mum's. I met Doug Mile's wife at the friut shop there. Can't remember her name, but I worked with Doug for a number of years at Midland Sociala Security. She said he still works in Centrelink (which is what the C.E.S. and Socicial Security became a while ago). We had a very late lunch at 2pm, which by Newcastle time was 4pm. I had only eaten some cereal, an apple and an orange, and some hot chocklate on the plane all day, so I was absolutely famished.
That night I slept from 7pm until about 3am (when I went to the toilet), and then until 7am. Getting to the toilet at night at my mum's is an involved process. My mum's security conscious (there's only her there now) and she has an outside toilet. To get to it I have to unlock four doors, including the bolt on the outhouse!
WednesdayYesterday my brother Mark to myself, mum, and his daughter Sophie to a resturant for my mother's birthday. It was really nice although Sophie was rather low. Her dog Minty died in its sleep next to her recently, and she had him longer than I had Pegasus. Mark, Dee (his wife) and Sophie are going on a trip to the Blue Mountains and Sydney today (Thursday) but they have to put Mango the cat down - not because of the trip, but because she has a sever liver problem and is in constant pain. In any case, coming so soon after Minty's death, this is rather upsetting. Golly, I know what she feels like. It seems I'll be back before their holiday's over, so I might be able to hook up with them for a day, maybe when they're visiting manley and Taronga Park Zoo. That will be really good I think.
Didn't do much else yeaterday, other than watch some TV, take photos in and around the house, and catch up on episodes of ANDROMEDA. I talked a lot with mum, who it seems still talks to Snoopy, even though he died in 1983, and sees ghosts of my aunty and dad (maybe), Perhaps it's not so unlikely that I still talk to the Poogle back home. Ronnice also told me the story of how, when I was still a baby and had Spinal Meningitus, that she saw an angel in the waiting room. And my brother Mark sees ghosts in his house (including a ghost cat). Hmmm, I'm starting to think that I'm normal for my family. :)
Thursday (today)
I made a point of having breakfast at
Miss Maud's in thecity. It's all Swedish all-you-can eat stuff. I made a pig of myself and it was wonderful. If I still have an appetite later I might go to
Mr Samurai for lunch. Don't think I'm only here for food - I'm not - but these are maybe the only two food outlets I miss from Perth (mmm, and maybe the most amazing Indian curry take-away in Mt. Lawley). Might not get too many opportunities to go to them in the future.
Right now I'm in an Internet cafe that seems to be located in the stripped and gutted premises of what used to be
Strombecker's which I used to play video games and pinball in the 70s and 80s. I think it's actually the same place I went to on the last two trips, only they moved from the upstairs location. Nice to have a bit of continuity. :)
I plan to spend most of the day in the city centre, doing a bit of window shopping and locating things. Stephen Dedman has a bookshop somewhere here (SHAFTO LANE!) and I'll see if I can say hello. I have a tradition (it used to be buying a book at
Dorrington's which no longer exists) of buying a CD at
78's when I come to Perth, and
Fantastic Planet should be right round the corner. Tomorrow night I'm having dinner with Ray and Alethea Raspa, whom I've known for over twenty years (we were all Trekkers together) and my uncle Allen (who introduced me to musicals) should be coming to lunch at Mum's on Monday.
This is a really good trip.
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First, I borrowed from the libraries: the first season of 
The second nice thing is that Kali and James phoned me from 
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For a while I just hovered around at the 
