Wise Women Welcome
to our New Look Homepage. 

We have been playing around behind the scenes trying to make our site a bit more user friendly. 

One thing we have done, that will be obvious to regular readers, is open up our comments section at the end of our blogs.  This section was hidden before and although you were keen to write to us via our email, I don’t think you were aware a comments section existed right there at the bottom of the blog. 

So please, if you see a comments section, send in a note.  Tell us what your thoughts are, what moves or motivates you, or just say 'Hello'. 
 
Go on, I'd love to hear from you...... 

DARK & STORMY

Yes, it is dark and stormy here in Sydney.  And the rain!  It is never ending.  This is not a good.  Our tourists won’t like this.  What must they be thinking? 

In fact I was in the city on Sunday and spoke with some folk from Alabama while standing in a café queue. I apologised for the horrible weather and they said they loved it.  They must be the only tourists around saying that though!  Apparently it is something like 91 degrees over in their home state, so I guess it is just a matter of perspective! 

             At last year's Light Festival

And what is really awful is a beautiful Light festival 'Vivid Sydney' open across the city itself.  Yes, you may want to drag yourself around Sydney in torrential rain to watch glorious light pictures on the Opera House and other buildings, or walk down the dark streets to see the interesting artistic light sculptures. 

If that sounds like you, there is a great festival on!!!!  I am praying for dry weather myself.  We went last year and it was such a fantastic experience. 

If want to see Sydney in a totally different light, get in there and soak it up!

Click here for details
 

BIRTHDAY BONAZA

Say ‘May’ in our house and it means we are up for heavy spending.  How many birthdays do we have?  Seems like hundreds and on Saturday night we hosted my son’s 35 birthday! 

    The Doh, Sweetie & Miss Charli

I tried to think of a theme, couldn’t come up with anything, and opted for providing an ‘impressive’ meal instead.  Oh yes, I did!  For mains we ate roast beef with crispy roast potatoes, sweet potato, pumpkin, parsnips and steamed broccoli and tiny carrots. OK, it does sound pretty unimpressive. 

But it was the dessert and cake that soared me into regions I have long forgotten.  So long forgotten I even had to buy some new cake tins as the oldies were beyond salvaging. 

I triumphed at a Baked or Bombe Alaska.  You know the one! Cake, ice cream brick smothered with thick peaks of fluffy meringue and then bravely slapped in the oven.  This is when 'praying to God' comes I handy as you don’t want to end up with a meringue tower perched on a sea of melted ice cream.  I had put ‘Beautiful’ on the job of time countdown and it was maintained to precision.  Perfecto!  A lightly browned Baked Alaska was removed from the oven, ice cream in tack. 

If only Lana could have had a bowl full of that after her MRI.  That sugar hit would have restored her ‘sea legs’ in a jiffy.

Then I made a fabulous ginger birthday cake, delectable even if I do say so myself.  Two huge cakes sandwiched together with luscious vanilla icing had me wondering how many hours in the gym all this would take to work off.  Most likely weeks!!!!

But it all got the thumbs up and Mr G was thrilled at my rare devotion to the cooking task. 

Fully sated we spent the next 4 hours singing hard and loud, trying to burn off that whacking intake of calories.  Oh yes, we just love our Playstation 'SingStar' Sing alongs.  A fabulous night full of laughter and fun!  Isn’t this is what life is all about.

        FALLING ABOUT          

              Me and my Dad

My dear old dad had another fall the other day.  Considering he has had two broken hips, he is lucky enough not to have done something major this time.  But it didn’t stop him wanting a cup of coffee at his favourite café. 

But dad is so ‘unbendable’, rigid as a board of wood in fact, and it took ages for him to get in and out of our car, and it’s a medium size sedan for heaven’s sake.  He simply could not bend his legs or his body enough to get his head under the door frame. He did though, after a long time of superhuman manoeuvering.

It got me thinking about the huge ‘ageing’ population who will need to use this form of transport, namely ‘motor vehicles’, in the future.  Are we going to sit back and just accept that we will spend forty minutes of an outing trying to get into and out of any vehicle?  It is crazy!! 

These lovely sleek cars might be ascetically attractive and great for the nimble, but when you are older, forget it!!!   So car manufacturers, take heed, think about this.  There will be a big market for cars built with the ‘older’ person in mind. 

SPECIAL HEARTFELT SYMPATHY

My brother’s partner received the most dreadful news the other day.  It the news no parent ever wants to receive.  Her only child, a son 21, was killed in a motor vehicle accident.  How would get through such a trauma?  Our love and thoughts are with them.

It took me back to a place, a time in my early marriage when such a drama played out in my own life.  My husband’s only sister, 21, and his 9 year old niece (an only child) were also killed in a car accident.  The horror, I remember, was all consuming.  As I watched my ‘new’ family and my ‘new’ husband deal with all consuming grief, I can remember living through it all in total disbelief.  Shortly after that Mr. G’s father died of a brain tumor. 

I am telling you this is because the person you would think least likely to cope actually triumphed.  This is Mr. G’s 87 year old mum.  She has endured many life shattering experiences (too many to tell you about) and how she has kept going is really a credit to her. 

I asked her once “What got you through all these times?”  She said it was her faith.  She simply believed that there was a destiny, a belief she would have to accept that, and her God to support her.  And she isn’t like she is an obsessive church goer although she practises her Catholic religion. 

Honestly, she is amazing and I often tell her she is my hero.  She has faced despair again and again and she is still one of the most loving, gentle, beautiful and caring human being around.  She carries no angst or bitterness. 

Mother In Law

And it must be hard not to let the sadness change your essence, but Mr. G’s mother is proof that no matter how terrible the blow, time and the movement forward through life allows you to still embrace the joy of your own living.

BREAST REVIEW

Remember my unpleasant encounter last year at the breast clinic, well; I was back there last week for a review.  I must say I was very, very nervous. 

Once the mammogram was done, the Doctor checked out my boobs and then he looked at the mammograms.  Great news, there were no ‘little stars’ in the left breast this time, but there was a ‘spot’ in the right breast.  Instantaneously my heart raced up to 190 beats a minute!  Back in to have another mammogram to enlarge that area. 

Thank goodness all is well and I can rest easy for another 18 months.  Have you had your breast check?  If you are taking HRT, you must never neglect your reviews. 

For Breast Health 
 

RENEE GOOSSEN’S,
A STAR IS BORN

 Renee

I have had lots of contact with the wonderful Wise Woman Renee Goossens lately as she lives with the excitement of her first grandchild.   Along the way I told her I was writing a ten minute play and how much fun it was.  (If you are reading this Sharon, yes, I took on the challenge!)

Renee mentioned she had been asked to write a play, actually starred in it and that it is now available on YouTube. 

Renee explained the rather humorous way that the film was made, the stinking 41 degree heat and the fact that the wrong music credit note was given as Chopin, and not Debussy’s Claire de Lune, and how none of it detracts from its true meaning. 

Listen to the beautiful piano music played by Aaron McMillan, the young musical genius, struck down at 30 from a brain tumor.      

As Renee lives with astonishing pain, I thoroughly admire her rising from her wheelchair to play some of the role.   So everyone, you are about to see Renee in action. 

NATURAL HAIR SHAMPOO
AND CONDITIONER.

 Roslyn

Our good friend, Roslyn Motter, has given us an Update on Hairloss. 

If you have a problem with this, check out here to find out what might be causing it, and the all natural shampoo and conditioner recipe might just be the answer. 

Why not try the recipe and let us know how it goes?

HOW ARE YOUR KIDNEYS           

Roslyn is a veritable font of knowledge as she prepares another article for us, this time on kidneys. 

Not to be neglected, these vital organs will work beautifully for you if you look after them!  But do you know what they actually control in your body!!!  Heaps of things! 

Check out About Kidneys.

LANA’S WISE WEEK

Now it is time to pop over and visit Lana’s Wise Week. 

Lana’s journey lately has been a roller coaster to say the least.  Her MRI story, while sounding quite terrifying, was hilariously told and must not be missed.  

Check out what has been happening in her life.

 

QUOTATION OF THE WEEK

My quote this time is by Farrah Fawcett.  Quite a glorious and wonderful creature in her youth, I really wish I knew at what age she made the following claim:

How impressive a quote if she had said this as an older woman. 

Well, it never hurts to use these skills to your advantage as long as you can – does it not!!!!

Have a cheery, happy week

Until next time