Moving day(s), a mockingbird and a tornado warning

On January 16, 2014April 11, 2014 By oceangirl63In UncategorizedLeave a comment

I’m back.

It’s been a while since my last blog……around 10 days I think, so here is the catch up since then.

It has been very hectic here, we moved plus we have both had the dreaded flu. Some crazy, mutant, foreign, fatal strain which seriously knocks the bejesus out of you. And the flu shot I had during the Australian winter has absolutely no effect on it either. Steve contracted the flu first and due to this particular strain being highly contagious I was next on its hit list (despite all my hand washing, avoidance of sick people – ‘its not me its you’ and orange eating). I think it may have been due to the strange weather patterns here that we finally succumbed to ill health. Well it was that or our very bad eating habits since arriving in the States but I’ll go with the weather as we experienced a polar vortex complete with below freezing temperatures (our pipes froze), snow and ice storms, artic winds and did I mention below freezing temps. IT WAS BITTERLY COLD!!!! Even the little lakes here in the community we now live in froze over. It was quite amazing.

These vortex’s are quite deadly and dangerous but thankfully after a week of miserable weather the temperatures began to increase which oddly made for perfect tornado weather (something about the cold and warm air mixing). We were in our new home four days and received our first tornado warning which I have to say was a little scary. The storm front started here in middle Georgia around 9:30am and swept its destructive way across the south and ran out of puff just short of the Atlantic ocean in North Carolina. You know how it can be a normal moment or day in time, then all of a sudden it goes eerily quiet: the quiet before the storm! Well that’s exactly what it was like. Of course the eerie silence is broken by the sound of the tornado warning siren though!

Anyway, back to the hectic element of the past week plus. Our move. We have moved into our home which is great and I have discovered we have our own resident mockingbird which is very special. And after observing this dear little chap I completely understand why ‘it is a sin to kill a mockingbird’. They are very sweet, very interesting and highly entertaining little birds. Apparently they are great mimics too apart from also having about 200 songs in their own repertoire.

Our home is lovely and we live in a pretty, well maintained gated community with its own flocks of resident Canadian Geese (a lovely and elegant bird). The geese have right of way on the roads and footpaths, as they should, and although they are artic natives they are very much at home here. I can actually hear them outside as I type this. They are doing their afternoon patrol or making their way back from visiting somewhere. They have a distinct honking call which is pleasurable to listen to although no doubt they will hiss, as most geese do, when they are a little perturbed about something.

I am still getting used to the house with its mysterious freezing pipes and plumbing, its nightly creaks and groans, thermostats and central heating (everything is in Fahrenheit) and deadly trash compactor. On the upside we have a flagged letterbox and squirrels in our back yard. Yes, apart from a lovely mockingbird we also have squirrels (the grey squirrel, the fox squirrel and another little southern flying squirrel who is timid and rarely spotted) who again are very entertaining and very cute unless you have out door cane furniture – which we don’t so we welcome the populous of Grove Pointe squirrels.

It seems there is so much to learn and understand about living in America (which is so different to Australia – a blog will follow) and I have to say I feel like such an environmental vandal since residing here. I try to be environmentally conscience but the heat stays on 24 hours a day 7 days a week and in summer the air conditioning is the same. Neither is ever turned off. And they don’t recycle. Why not? I have no idea! My ‘green’ bags are a source of mystery and enlightenment to the grocery packers (young teenage boys or very short older Hispanic males) who are almost reluctant to use them. They will however use about 50 plastic bags for 50 items. Seriously, it is almost one item per plastic bag. I will however endeavour to train them to my ways……or just pack my own groceries (but still tip them).

So our rented furniture arrived on the Monday and once the bed was bought inside and made up Steve fell into it and snored and sweated and coughed and snuffled the next few days away in it (although I did have to tazer him out of it around the third day in order to take him to the doctor). Moved out of our temporary accommodation on the Tuesday, the day after that our shipment from Australia arrived (all great on that front with nothing broken or damaged) so I potted about, unpacked, moved furniture, unpacked a bit more, moved some more things about and got very settled and relaxed in order to enjoy my new surroundings (Steve will never find a thing) aaaand, that’s when the flu hit. Therein I have been bed bound for about five days although I am starting to feel (and look) much more human again. I am also up and about today (okay, I am writing this in bed) testing out the new internet and cable connection but up and about in fluey sort of way. I also glanced at my emails this afternoon to find I have quite a bit of catching up to do so thank you for your messages and I will get to them all as soon as I can.

And before I almost forget, Gus and Zoe have also both settled in beautifully and seem to have made themselves very much at home. They are two happy cats so that makes me happy.

Well, I guess this is home now. For the next three years anyway so nothing else: tornadoes, freezing pipes, a ‘Christine’ trash compactor (you will have to read Steven King novels to understand) or the flu really matters because being home is really where a story beings.

Off the beaten track

On January 5, 2014April 11, 2014 By oceangirl63In Uncategorized2 Comments

Happy new year to all xx

New years is that small window in time that speaks potential. Its the start of something new and fresh. It has been a good start to the new year for us. In the second week of this brand new year we move into our new home, our small shipment of chattels arrives from Australia and life starts to get back to some form of normality (as normal as possible anyway). We have been keeping quite busy too. We have been out and about in the state of Georgia and given America is the country of the road trip, that’s exactly what we have been doing.

There are millions and millions of miles (1 mile is equivalent to about 1.60 kilometres) of highways and roads in America. Given those statistics, the road trip has become one of the great American pastimes and there really is no better way to see and experience the country. The tip with a road trip is to get off the interstates. The interstates are congested and very busy large three to five lane highways that link each state. Get off the interstates and venture onto the back roads because that way you will find the true little gems of an area. If you don’t get off the interstates you will miss wonderful things like coconut and peanut butter pies, cotton fields, rattlesnake round-ups, fried green tomatoes, mayhaws, hickory trees, swamp gravy and sweetened iced teas served in old mason jars.

Steve has had time off work. Time off being just over two weeks during Christmas and new years. This time was not taken voluntarily. The section of the US military base Steve now works at ‘closes down’ for a short length of time over the festive season. As a rule, and because we don’t have children, we never ever travel or take time off during the ‘holidays’. This time however, the decision was out of our hands so we decided to make the most of it by doing a few road trips around the state of Georgia. And I am happy to report that after traversing some of Georgia’s lesser known byways, there is still plenty more out there to see.

Road trips are great and one of the best thing about a road trip is the adventure. The expectation, the discovery, the exploration and the surprises be they good or bad are what really make up any great adventure and I have a few tips for a really good road trip:

1) Buy and then use a Navman (or equivalent) and also carry a map. I happen to like maps a lot but beware: some roads in the USA were decommissioned in the 60’s and no longer exist although they may still show up.

2) Take CD’s. The music stations in the south are VERY limited. Its country/gospel/religion/gospel/religion/country and one ‘rock’ station who play Nickleback. Of all the bands in the world (and that’s a big call), I dislike (immensely) Nickelback the most! And, if you are the driver on the said road trip then you get to choose the music being played. That is actually an unwritten driving rule! And yes, you absolutely can listen to Neil Diamond singing ‘Cracklin’ Rosie’ and ‘Forever in Blue Jeans’ as many times as you like.

3) I’m afraid I have to be blunt with the next one. Flatulence! Even though you may be suffering great physical discomfort do not fart continually! And under no circumstances should you ever eat flatulent inducing foods the night before a road trip washed down with yeasty carbonated ales. It all makes for a very unpleasant environment in the car.

4) Do not comment on the other drivers driving style. This surely tests a relationship AND not in a good way!

5) Don’t eat at any ‘fast-food’ chain stores. I know, its always the easy option but come on, this is an adventure! Oh, and don’t order the grits (trust me) but definitely try the fried chicken, okra and green beans, boiled peanuts, the crab stew, sloppy joes, the frog stew (which ironically does not contain any frog), the pork chops, biscuits, hush puppies and the cobblers at the quirky little old diners dotted around the landscape of small towns in the south.

6) If you want to take photos take them. You may not pass that way again.

7) Accept that things may not always go to plan. It is also okay to admit you are wrong and it is also perfectly okay to change your mind.

8) Pack more underwear than you will ever consider wearing especially for overnight stays and longer.

9) Never ask a local man for directions or information. Even if he doesn’t know the correct answer he will tell you something anyway in order to have polite conversation……… and the information will probably be wrong.

10) And the last and most important tip. Enjoy the journey xx

A beautiful little church (still in use every Sunday)

This really is someone’s lovely little house (which they actually live in)

These are biscuits. I love southern biscuits.

These are biscuits with gravy. I don’t love southern biscuits with gravy. I like my gravy a little different to southern gravy. I like it brown and tasting of meat juices!

I have never seen a pecan described as ‘desirable’- what a wonderful narrative for such an unassuming little nut

Cheese (American style)

I’m really going to need some bigger pants soon!

I just love that there is a ‘cookie’ (not to be confused with a biscuit) called a ‘snickerdoodle’

Rows and rows and rows of perfectly preserved peaches

We’ll take a cup of kindness yet……..and a Martini

On December 29, 2013April 11, 2014 By oceangirl63In Uncategorized4 Comments

Its that odd little week between Christmas and New Years and it will also be my last blog post for 2013. I Know, can you believe it is the end of another year. While writing this I am remembering some good new years of past. Those spent camping at Tallebudgera beach as a child were usually pretty good but maybe that’s because I was seeing it all through the eyes of a child. As a kid on new years you got to stay up late….really, really late (no doubt the adults around us were coerced into staying up) and you got to do things you usually couldn’t do. And just like Christmas, everything seemed a little bit more magical then too. We had a Scottish new years once while camping. I still remember parts of that night even though I was probably only about 8 at the time. Auld Lang Syne, Cold Duck (if your a child of the 60’s you’ll know what that is), bungers and tom thumbs (fireworks were legal in Queensland back then), haggis, sipping alcohol from unattended glasses, coloured paper streamers and the Gold Coast highway. Actually except for the haggis, the above was our usual new years at the coast!

At those same campgrounds (we camped there every year for about 7 weeks from December to January and this was in the 60’s and 70’s), we would also listen to the artists at the ‘Playroom International’ as their voices would filter out of the venue, across the highway and down to the camp ground. The Playroom was a bit like a rock venue which attracted some of the biggest artist around of that era. We would lay in our bunks and listen to Johnny O’Keefe (I know, pinch me – J OK, how lucky were we), Lovelace Watkins (I had a serious girly crush on this man for a very very long time), Frankie Davidson to name a few that I can remember. Thinking of the Playroom has also made me remember Santa Land, The Pink Poodle, Jack Evans, the Burleigh Heads pool, Meter Maids, The Birdwatcher Bar, Surfers Paradise when it was actually a surfers paradise, the Miami ice building, the Queensland Hotel, the Iluka and Ten The Esplanade etc. Talk about showing my age! All this has also made me think of my sister Tracey, Dad (our grandfather) and I driving off into the bush surrounding the Gold Coast (yes it was a very different place back then – there was lots and lots of bushland around……..and we didn’t wear seatbelts either) to find our Christmas tree. Once chosen, Dad would cut it down with his tomahawk which was kept in the car. We would put the slain tree in the boot of the Morris Major and drive back to the tent feeling pretty chuffed then Dad would stick the tree in a bucket of wet sand. We decorated the tree with really lovely old ornaments made of glass, paper chains we hand-made and little paper Chinese lanterns which you could actually put lit candles in – all very beautiful and very dangerous given the tree was also highly flammable. But who cared back then as the tent flap was also left open during the night. I know, it just makes you want to run through your house with a pair of scissors in your hand now doesn’t it.

I don’t know if the Playroom is still there. I am hoping with all my heart that it is but I am afraid to google it just in case! Just in case meaning I’m afraid it may have been demolished by now to make way for some god awful food chain or worse! If it has been demolished please don’t email me or leave a comment to break the bad news. Just let me live with the idea of it still being there. It’s all I ask……..well that and world peace!

Anyway, back to new years which is what my blog was originally going to be about. As I got older I spent less time with family and more doing my own thing. My own thing over the years has involved a very dodgy taxi ride, a kebab and a bathtub! A Village People Policeman look a like, a park bench and a kebab in King George Square (is there a theme happening here!). Illegal fire works in Canberra, a monkey in Hatton Vale, a fire extinguisher (nothing to do with fire works or the monkey), Champagne, a priest and unattainable new years eve resolutions made and broken within two to three days……..ah, happy memories.

This new years I am surmising the night will also involve some form of time travel. Travelling back in time is not for the faint of heart and it should come with a warning label due to the unwanted sided effects:

1) One may lose consciousness

2) One may suffer temporary memory loss

3) One may suffer a headache

You see my time travel comes courtesy of Gin and did you know more classic cocktails are made of gin than any other spirit. And by the way, London Gin is not necessarily always made in London. I know, I was as shocked as you when I found that out! Anyway, my evening will begin with my usual Martini’s (it makes me feel very ‘Rat Packy’) and I am after all living in the USA now. And it is not a correct statement either that you must be a melancholic 55 year old with bad bed hair sitting on the stairs in a semi dark house with mascara stains down your face or a sultry smoker voiced jazz singer to drink gin. That’s all just a big myth! As is the other big myth about gin – it makes you depressed! No studies have ever proven that gin is more of a depressant than any other spirit so stop sulking (because quite frankly a little self deprecation is good but self pity is just plain annoying) and go make yourself a Martini. You don’t know how! Well here is my recipe:

4 x 25ml of gin (I prefer Bombay Sapphire), 1 x 25ml of dry vermouth and a strip of lemon peel (I like mine with a twist rather than an olive). Add ice to a shaker and add wet ingredients then stir (I also like mine stirred and not shaken) then strain into a chilled glass. Twist the lemon peel until it leaves ‘a slick’ of oil on the top of the martini.

Here’s one I prepared earlier…….cheers xx

Around the stroke of midnight and at the start of a brand new wonderful year I will raise my glass once again. Have a wonderful safe and very happy new year. Thank you for reading the blog. See you all next year xx

Seasons greetings from America

On December 23, 2013April 11, 2014 By oceangirl63In Uncategorized4 Comments

‘Merry Christmas everyone’

This really is one of the best times to be in America. The festive cheer is just so infectious and I can’t believe Christmas is so close…..only a couple of days away now. Having said that, I am dealing with it quite adequately. I’m eating lots of American Christmas food (sugar, fat and cinnamon laden – these Americans really know how to celebrate) and I am washing it all down with a little Christmas ‘cheer’ and eggnog. I will admit I’m still acquiring a taste for eggnog though. Who ever thought to put cream, sugar, whipped eggs, nutmeg and alcohol together! Probably the same person who came up with the marshmallow loaded baked potato recipe.

I hope everyone reading this latest blog can look back on the past year and reflect on something really lovely or special that has happened for them, think of those less fortunate – especially those of the animal world, think of those no longer with us and look forward to a wonderful brand new year ahead. And of course to everyone back in Australia (and other parts of the world) please accept my ‘wishing you a wonderful and very safe and happy Christmas’………….via a blog post. Okay, its a cheap way to get out of sending cards and making phone calls but hey, its the thought that counts.

And yes Virginia, there really is a Santa Claus as my Christmas wish came true. Gus and Zoe (our two much loved and much missed cats) have arrived safely in America, albeit a little thinner than when last seen just over a month ago. Thank you Jetpets for such a great job and a huge thank you to everyone else involved in their safe delivery. Gus and Zoe are still adjusting to the changes of the past month which could not have been easy for them. I mean it was certainly no picnic for us so I just can’t imagine how they must have felt during the whole process. And no doubt jetlag has played enormous havoc with their little feline systems too but given all that, we are just so happy to have them with us again……and just quietly, I think they are very happy to be with us again too. Their arrival in America has been the best present ever. Except for that one present………oh, never mind! This really is the best gift ever.

Now, as you will see from the following photos, nobody does Christmas quite like the Americans. Several hundreds of thousands of lights have given their lives for some of the most wonderful and often inexplicable offerings of Christmas joy. Some of the Christmas displays around here are quite elaborate and very beautiful, some are rich in kitch, some show great imagination and some are just down right tacky but who cares, it’s Christmas. Plus in America they have ‘ugly Christmas sweater (sweater is the American equivalent to an Australian jumper) parties’. Secretly, its my favourite part of the American Christmas tradition so far. Have I convinced you yet that no one does Christmas like the Yanks!

Just about to put my order in for next year. I love Amazon.com !!!

No sheep (nothing here is made from wool) or cheap synthetic Christmas trees were harmed in the making of these party jumpers

There are obviously some people out there with incredibly imaginative and creative minds and their holiday spirit shows this to the hilt. Almost every home here has a display of some kind be it big, small or enormous. The absolute heart and soul which people put into these displays is amazing. I mean, have you ever done something so wonderful that you have actually stood back and admired it and thought to yourself ‘wow, I think this is what I am really meant to do on this earth. I have finally found my calling’. Well I haven’t, but I have witnessed some pretty unbelievable displays although it does beg the question: is this what they are truly meant to do or do they just have too much time (and beer) on their hands?? But what does it matter because I’m LOVING it and its Christmas.

Enjoy the light show.

Holy Holidays Batman!!

When too many lights just aren’t enough

There is a house underneath…….somewhere

I saved the very best display until last. I like to call it ‘the less is more look’……..

Christmas day will raise my glass in a silent toast to all but for now………Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night xxx

Guess who’s coming to dinner!

On December 18, 2013December 19, 2013 By oceangirl63In UncategorizedLeave a comment

Actually I don’t know who is coming to dinner and more to the point who I should be expecting however in order to furnish our rental home we are required to fill it with rented ‘show room quality’ furniture. Hmmm!!

Now, some of the furniture I have looked at (there is a web site which we must order from) is well, lets just say, a little different from what I would normally choose but hey, its not ours forever and sometimes a change is as good as a holiday. Although I am still not really sure about the ‘Aristotle Onassis’ themed décor. Probably not the person I would be taking decorating tips from!

‘This quirky thing is a lamp – this is also one of the items I am actually hoping is available’

We have finally found a home to rent. I won’t bore you with the ridiculous lengths you need to go to in order to find a rental house here in America. Well, Georgia anyway. Lets just say it is a very different and somewhat strange – and by strange I mean really odd, peculiar, bizarre, perplexing, ‘you cannot be serious’ and ‘laugh otherwise you really will cry’ process. It also included door knocking (something one does not want to do unless one is a Mormon), a holstered pistol and a hit run driver. The hit and run driver was a water retentive soccer ‘mom’ with bad hair and two unattractive children on board – I hope she reads this and gets a serious case of the guilts or at least is completely crushed by the fact I said she has a really bad do! Oddly, I cannot remember much about the pistol guy but bad hair…..well!! And all of this takes an awful lot of your time and patience and sanity and time!!!!

Having said that, we have however finally found a home which we are very happy with in a nice subdivision. And the house is somewhat swankier than the one I left behind in Gawler. This isn’t a photo of the actual house we will be renting. I didn’t put the real one up just in case – there are some really scary people out there who are quite clever and I thought they may find the house then sneak in and steal my camel lamp. Stranger things have been know to happen although they usually include basements and duct tape!

The ‘doppelganger’ house. Our home for the next three years. I just hope I don’t get too snobby living there….well I would if I were actually living in this house!

We won’t be able to move in until the new year…..again its the process!!!! but YIPEEEE home at last.

I drove it like I stole it (oh, and it was completely unintentional)

On December 14, 2013April 11, 2014 By oceangirl63In Uncategorized7 Comments

There are many things that I aspire to. Being less oc, being able to play a musical instrument properly (I have absolutely no sense of rhythm – I can’t even clap in time to music), being able to understand contemporary dance, not knowing all the words to every Meatloaf song and eating my weight in crab (see, it really doesn’t take a lot to make me happy). What I don’t aspire to however, is driving in America!

It’s a little bit like my ‘to-do-list’. I have a list (which I have had for years) of what I call my ‘top 5 fabo jobs to achieve’ and I have just double checked it and guess what. Driving in America was definitely not written on it ANYWHERE!! Actually there are only two things left on my list. One is side-car racing (me being the monkey not the driver) and the other is storm chaser. Now both of these I haven’t achieved……..yet!

Driving here in America is a skill and I did receive some very sage advice from Grasshopper before I left Australia. Grasshopper’s advice: Right is tight. Left is long and keep up with the traffic otherwise you will get booked for driving too slowly.

That advice was great and in hindsight, very helpful. Well in theory it was great. Actually doing it, driving here, is something else again. Now I know that in Australia I am considered a good driver. Cautious and capable and considerate. That’s my driving in a nut shell (plus I always drive little cars: cute, turn on a penny, zip about, economical little cars) NOT hulking great cars as per sold and driven here in the states. Why is everything so BIG in America! Therein my driving today was not what I would consider my finest hour!

Everything is bigger in America!

Ditto!

Anyway, back to my good driving habits for just a moment. I like to drive (in Australia) and I tend to take more of a gentle approach when behind the wheel. Music on and off I toddle. Nice, happy and relaxed as all drivers should be! I give way, I’m as happy as a clam, I don’t road rage, I sing along (badly) to the music on the stereo and all is good with the world. My hand will gesture ‘after you’ as I let someone in then the other driver smiles and gives a ‘thank you’ wave. Look at that, I’ve made someone’s day just by being courteous. See, happy happy!! And may I point out I have been driving for years.

Today however, that all changed. It was horrific. Today I was like the get away driver in a bad D grade British movie. Here’s how it went: Me behind the wheel…on the other side of the car which was on the other side of the road!!! Both hands on the wheel, swerve, swerve (insert expletive!!), swerve, brake (insert expletive!!!). Indicate – the windscreen wipers come on – turn wipes off and they go faster…..after the third time insert looooong expletive. And may I state I also have one of the cleanest windscreen’s in Georgia! Frown. Scowl. I am not my happy driving self. Swerve, dodge other ‘crazy, what the hell were they thinking’ drivers who DO NOT indicate (that is correct – I also have to be a mind reader). These people drive like they are on steroids, no doze and moonshine while TALKING on their cell’s. And yes! It is legal to talk on your cell (mobile) here while driving. What a stupid and puzzling law. Scowl more…now I have a permanent frown line!! Brake, but actually go through a red light to yield to the right (another strange law and there are plenty of them here: fireworks are illegal but sure carry a gun or three and that’s just the children!!! ), remember right is tight and left is long. KEEP DRIVING ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE BLOODY ROAD!!!

Now I’m not good with change and I will be very truthful in stating that I can be a little unpleasant when change occurs that I have no control over…..plus I like driving in Australia VERY much…did I say that earlier!!! And America is LARGE, you need to drive to get around. There is no way out of this. I can’t just ignore it. I have to drive!!! The town we now live in is spread out. You need a car to get around – there is no public transport/and you just don’t just walk around here. Plus to get my Georgian licence (in order to drive and get insurance) I will also be required to do a written test in two parts/eye test/and driving test which consists of a reverse parallel park AND I am going to be doing this in a car much larger than I have ever driven before (in my lifetime!!!).

And trust me when I say the cars here are big.

Big truck, little…….man!

Even the law like em big!

The locals! Please don’t ask!

Just big…too big for me anyway

Seriously, today I drove like a psychotic hillbilly on crack! Was it traumatic – YES!! Was it enjoyable – NO!! What was the stress factor – OFF THE FREAKING RICHTER SCALE!!! It would also be safe to say I have hung up my driving gloves……only momentarily though because I’m no quitter.

Will I master the art of driving safely in America? Probably, but it will also probably take about three years which also happens to be the length of time we are posted to Georgia for.

Trouble is, when I get back home I will have to learn to drive all over again…….on the ‘right’ side of the road in a nice little car!

Toto, I’ve a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore!

On December 4, 2013 By oceangirl63In UncategorizedLeave a comment

Twenty five was the speed limit

Motorcycle not allowed in it

You go to the store on Friday

You go to church on Sunday

They call it……..

We have arrived in Georgia and it is definitely all mittens and scarf weather now. There is a crispness to the air and it’s cold and a little rainy. Well maybe not so much rain but more like a soft persistent mist. It was -2 on the day we arrived in Georgia and it had snowed two days previous.

Well this is a very different part of America so I’ll give you a bit of a run down:

There are 5 southern states – Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina and Kentucky.

Georgia is the state and Atlanta is the capital. Georgia is known as the ‘peach state’ and ‘The Empire State of the South’ and the state was established in 1732 and named after King George II of Great Britain. The climate here is primarily humid sub-tropical with sultry hot humid summers (think Darwin but with hurricanes, tornadoes and tropical storms) and cold winters (think Canberra) with occasional snow.

Flora – Red Cedar, Oaks, Maples, Sweet Gums and Hickories (just to name a small few) and the Cherokee Rose is also the state flower.

Fauna – White Tail Deer, Black Bears, Mockingbirds, diamondback/cottonmouths/copperheads (snakes), Alligators, Catfish, Blue crabs, fiddler crabs and shrimp, raccoons, armadillos, squirrels and rednecks (just to name a small few). Note: Rednecks are the human equivalent of ‘I have no idea what’. They are a little scary so I would presume it is best not to feed them or pat them or poke them with anything sharp.

Now, this place has an incredible and fascinating history. Mention ‘the war’ and everyone will know which one! Georgia is also the ‘god fearing bible belt’ of the south and the largest state east of the Mississippi. There are also some interesting laws here in Georgia: 1) Donkeys must not be kept in a bathtub. 2) No one may carry an ice cream cone in their back pocket if it is Sunday. 3) All signs must be written in English and 4) It is illegal to use profanity in front of a dead body which lies in a funeral home or in a coroners office.

Now, I have to say the true southern accent is a beautiful thing to listen to. I think it’s the slow genteel drawl that peaks your attention and good manners and southern hospitality are still a seriously respectable and practised art form here. ‘Please’, ‘thank you’ and ‘you’re welcome’ are all commonly used words……as they should be anywhere.

The south is also where eating reaches epic proportion. And a small tip for the novice – belt loosening or elasticised pants are a necessity! Sweet potatoes all come butter covered, there is pan-fried buttered catfish, hot biscuits smothered in gravy, southern fried chicken, collard greens and corn bread. A little delicacy here is a large (and I mean LARGE – served as a side dish) baked potato with butter, caramel sauce and marshmallows generously dusted with cinnamon sugar..……I have had to check my pulse on a number of occasions since eating here! And pretty much everything you eat or drink is ‘super-sized’ – something I believe America has invented as revenge on the world!

It is here in Georgia that I had my first slice of ‘sweet potato pie’. And I have to say it was seriously good and seriously addictive…….addictive in a good way! I have been known to eat desserts of all kind and quality and quantity when placed in front of me so I was at the mercy of the hand of pastry chef who cut the slice. And the piece of pie wasn’t tooooo big and it wasn’t toooo small. It was just right (as was the second piece – we had to order a second as Steve didn’t get a chance to try the first). I also tried Key Lime Pie last night. Again see above however it was I who cut the slices (and thank you Sophie for my first introduction to the American Key Lime Pie).

Well I am about to finish a coffee and slice of Key Lime Pie (Sophie left it here…..was that a good or bad move) then head out into the crisp air to walk around the gated unit complex we are staying in temporarily….it is gated lest I run into a bear or something more threatening although I don’t know what would be more threatening than coming face to face with a bear unless of course it was Humphrey! The day cold with dull grey skies however due to the pie I will be heading out with a happy heart and seeing a sunnier day than will greet me…….plus I will be wearing my elasticised pants!

And that’s the beauty of this city……

On November 27, 2013April 11, 2014 By oceangirl63In UncategorizedLeave a comment

‘Our first glimpse of San Francisco – just a little foggy’

It is winter here in America. It really should be all mittens and scarf weather however it is not at present. That is not to say it isn’t chilly but the weather here in San Francisco really is beautiful. Blue skies and a winter day warmed by the Californian sun.

Day and night, San Francisco is a wonderful place. A city of infinite possibility. There is just so much to do and see and eat and experience. I really have developed a deep affection for this city with its gentle enduring fog, its steep hills, galleries, painted ladies, exquisitely beautiful architecture, murals, light filled spaces, mission district, cable cars and spectacular coast line. It really is stunning. For all its stunning beauty though, San Francisco does have a couple of drawbacks (I’m just saying). I have listed them so you can see what I mean:

1. It is illegal to beat clean a rug outside of your home
2. It is illegal to walk an elephant down Market Street unless it is on a leash
3. And number three, which happens to be my personal favourite – it is illegal to use ‘used underwear’ to wipe your windshield clean!

I guess if you can live with those small legalities then San Francisco could definitely be the place for you.

‘One of the many murals dotted about in the city’

Today we sat huddled on ferry on the way to Sausalito. On the trip across the bay we got to marvel at one of the most iconic landmarks in the world: The Golden Gate Bridge. It is a pretty amazing structure with its 1.7 mile span and to think it was built in 1937. I always thought ‘golden gate’ was a reference to the colour of the vaulting carroty orange Art Deco arches but it actually refers to the beautiful reflection of the sun off the bay. This bridge really is breathtaking.

‘The Golden Gate Bridge’

We have also ventured out to the Napa Valley which is just over an hour’s drive (almost two by public transport) north of San Francisco. It’s the wine, food and arts capital. It is a very beautiful area and after sampling many a good wine from this beautiful region I seriously needed a napa!

On to food: for many years now, and probably longer than I care to remember, my day has always started with a biscuit and a cup of leaf tea then I have breakfast which consists of more tea and a filling meal. Well, there is change! ‘Miss Routine’ (or as a dear friend of mine calls me ‘Little Miss OCD’) starts her day now with complete difference……seriously, I’m living on the edge :)! My day begins with a cuban coffee – the guy who served me my first cuban said ‘baby, once you have one of these you’ll never go back’ and he was right. And this morning my day began with a ‘cuban’ and ‘The Rebel Within’. Which is, you question? Well I’ll tell you.

‘The Rebel Within’ is a softly boiled farm egg entirely (and I have to say mysteriously because I really don’t know how they did it) encased in a perfectly cooked asiago cheese, green onion and sausage muffin cake. It was plate lickingly good. I don’t know if ‘lickingly’ is a word but the muffin was seriously good! It actually topped the ‘dynamo donut’ that I had the day prior. That little delicacy was a cake donut topped with crispy bacon and sautéed in bacon juice – can you believe I actually wrote bacon juice because I thought it sounded healthier than bacon fat! And this cakey little donut was served with sautéed apples (they also received the bacon juice treatment) and maple glaze. Need I say more.

We have eaten some really great food in San Francisco – a burger at a diner, freshly cooked crab and shrimp down at the wharfs, cured meats, hand-made pasta in Little Italy, pot stickers and pho in Chinatown and have had some good beers and better conversations in ‘dugout’ bars dotted about the city. Rudyard Kipling once said “San Francisco has only one drawback. Tis hard to leave” and no truer words have been spoken. We leave San Francisco first thing tomorrow morning (Thurs) after spending seven great days here.

‘Shrimp with a Margona Cocktail. That is correct. That is actually a Corona beer in a Margaritia!’

Having said all that, I have also opted for the healthier food alternative too – the ‘farmers markets’. And these markets were seriously impressive! I just love a farmers market and have been known to literally drive hours to go to a really good one back in Australia. It’s a little community of energy and passion and produce. For some reason I especially love a market in winter. I don’t really know why but perhaps the markets seem less bustling, less crowded and it’s the time of year you don’t just get the summer staple of salad greens and tomatoes. Winter markets offer up what I consider the ‘underdogs’ of the culinary world (and who doesn’t love an underdog). This is the time of year you will find your beets, your nips, your broad beans, your swedes, your nettles, your kales and your brussels. All of the nice old fashioned (the purists call them heritage) winter vegies. At these markets, held at the iconic ferry building at the foot of Market Street, I stocked up on a couple of things portable to the state of Georgia. Home-made preserves, jams and pickles. Had I not, I would have been Mrs Hubbard with a very bare cupboard when arriving in Georgia.

Now, by nature I am a walker. Walking is my preferred mode of transport. I call it the ‘foot falcon’ – the way you get around without a car. I love walking in cities or in any destination I find myself in. It really is the very best way to see and experience a place. And I like to be an independent traveller. No plan! Just a trusty local black and white map folded in the back pocket of my jeans, my camera in the other and some money stuffed somewhere about my person. There are no booked tours, no coach tours to sight-see with 40 other tourist crammed onto a bus followed by a boring buffet lunch, definitely no staying in my room watching cable and no sleeping in late until 2:30 in the afternoon for me. I am up and walking because when you walk you find little nooks and crannies and a wonderful insight that the tourist doesn’t generally see. It’s a great experience of the world beyond your own little door. My husband Steven and I don’t, at times, like to do the same things. We are two very different people with very different tastes and ideals. Quite often he will do his thing and I will very happily go and do mine. Mine usually involves walking and it was whilst having a bit of a skulk about that I found a couple of little gems.

1. The unique and beautiful architecture of the city buildings and the steep streets with their amazingly pretty houses.

2. A great little second hand book store: and there was nothing more comforting than to be sitting in that lovely little store with a really good cuban (coffee – not the man), the smell of old dog-eared pages and watching San Francisco pass by. After a reasonable rummage I also mananged to find a couple of books to buy. And you know, there is still plenty of room in my port for the books which fit snugly along-side the fab vintage jumpsuit I purchased earlier in the day at an obscure little store. And by obscure I mean I could have purchased a pair of vintage rattle snake skin riding boots together with matching earrings along with a plate of warmed scones with jam and clotted cream!

3. A grungy little deli/diner on Geary Street: where they serve up tongue, brisket, corned beef, lox etc all on rye breads. I had one of the tastiest bowls of chicken broth and matzo balls followed by brisket on rye. YUM!

And that’s the beauty of this city. You just never know what you will find.

Next stop…..Atlanta Georgia.

Just some photographs……

On November 25, 2013December 9, 2013 By oceangirl63In UncategorizedLeave a comment

Lombard Street is perhaps the crookedest little street in the world. Eight hairpin switchbacks and the downward pitch all lined with little gardens and beautiful houses. Its pretty amazing and I have wanted to visit here since I was a child from watching ‘The Streets of San Francisco’ with my Nan – her puffing away on a packet of fags as my sister and I sat with her, the three of us eating cucumber and vinegar sandwiches late into the night.

The top of Lombard Street

The famous Irish Coffee at the famous ‘Buena Vista’ being enjoyed by a Scotsman

Ice skating in the park

A beautiful ‘Holiday’ window

Flat foldable pizza!!!!

Riding the Cable Cars at night – great fun 🙂

Just a couple of photos. A more informative blog: as the monkey who caught his tail in the fan said….’not long now’.

Are we there yet……

On November 20, 2013December 9, 2013 By oceangirl63In UncategorizedLeave a comment

So this is what 50 years of life history packed into two shipping containers looks like. Virtually our entire household contents will be going into storage for the next three years.

Packed and ready to go. I shall be making a valiant effort to live out of this port over the next two months. Very important ‘note to self’: Google op-shops in Georgia.

Now, I’m taking a bit of an educated guess here in stating that this move has no doubt been one of the most stressful, sleep depriving, demanding and literally working ones bum off – although sadly mine has not changed shape or size – experiences. There have been some hurdles, there have been some tantrums (and that was just both of our cats) and there have been some pretty chaotic times but it will have been well worth the effort. Who really knows what the next three years or even the time after that will bring but I am very sure of one thing: it is going to be an adventure like no other.

We bid farewell to Australia in a couple of hours so my next post will be from America.

Could somebody pinch me! Seriously!

oceangirl – these are my stories

Author: oceangirl63