Today is the day I have to finish my Christmas shopping. It’s going to be squeezed in around a trip to the hair dresser (bliss!), a trip to the doctor (sigh) and an eye-examination because all that reading in dimly lit simulators has played havoc with my eyesight (nothing to do with my age :-D)
So far the list is manageable, but I know there’ll be the last minute hiccups. First stop will be Collins Booksellers at Smithfield because when the wet season arrives you can never had too many books. Next stop Vivienne Francines because a girl can never have too many tops (it’s that wet season excuse again…). Zonky Plonky usually has gorgeous soaps and quirky cards then I’ll wander around a couple of wine merchants, chocolate shops and plant nurseries. On the way home it will be off to Glaskins Gallery for a final browse.
Glaskins has been running art courses all year for the Trinity Picininis and their work is on display over Christmas. Whimsical children’s art always makes me smile. I’m also a sucker for the hand painted book marks and Tanya Sarianti’s delicately painted ceramics. If you’re a tea drinkers then there’s nothing more beautiful than one of her teapots!
Then it will be home to wrap them all. Tomorrow, I plan to put my feet up and relax before we head south on Christmas day for a flying visit to my mum in Brisbane for lunch and dinner. My brother and his family are joining us so it should be fun. My sister and her family are rugged up somewhere in the deep cold in the UK at the moment and their Christmas will be very different to ours!
I hope your Christmas is full of family and friends where ever in the world you’re celebrating. 2011 will no doubt be busier than this year so I wish you a safe and happy New Year and all the best for the twelve months ahead.
I had to laugh. A railway preservation group in NZ has grabbed a firefighting hull for preservation. When NZR retired the 58 seat 1930’s Vulcan railcars, one arport bought one for firefightingh traiing as it was cheaper than buying a old aircraft. It has now been fully restored and is running on the mailine again!
Cathy, I believe all bar one of our old Shorts 360 are still flying. A couple of the 330s are fire-fighting hulls now…
Merry Christmas to you, Eleni and all the very best for 2011:-)
Hope you had a wonderful Christmas and may you have a fantastic 2011!
I see acording to the latest Airliner World, that Shorts prototype #3 has been handed over to the Ulster Aviation Museum for preservation. There are still a lot of them flying. Pacfic Coast Airlines out of Vancouver uses them on their British Columbia services (along with Twotters, Saab 340’s and Beech 1900’s)
I don’t know what will replace them when theyreach the end of their lives. One possiblity is the Ilyushin 148 or 158, which looks a lot like a twin engine BAE 146
I did fly the 360, Cathy. The Shed was a beautiful forgiving old bus with trailing link undercarriage that really did kiss the runway on a good landing. I spent a little over a year on them so not a lot of time, but enough to respect them. If only they’d been pressurised…
Helene, did you ever fly the Shorts 3300 or 360? (aka “the box the 737 came in”) 🙂
Yep, it’s a wet Christmas this year, Cathy – flooding rain for a large proportion of Qld’s east coast… Hope Zeus hasn’t floated away by the time we get back from Bris….
Sandy, I’ve had my ‘Vivienne’ fix for the year now. You need to slip up on an overnight and do some shopping.
Those bromiliads are beautiful aren’t they? And they last so long. Enjoy having your man home. Merry Christmas to you both, and KC and her man:-)
Oh my! Vivienne Francines, you lucky devil and Zonky Plonky, yes I spent a few happy hours browsing there. I just got back from the hairdresser so feeling very pampered and pretty.
Love the ginger. We’ve got an orange bromiliad flowering that would rival it.
Merry Christmas, Cathy.
Merry Christmas, Bron.
And Merry Christmas G, Zeus and Helene 🙂
Merry Xmas. Looks like the wet season is arriving with a vengance up there. I see you may have cyclone in the making. Stay safe