I spent a wonderful soul-reviving time away for a few days, staying with my bestie Keith's place on NSW's lower Central Coast (near Gosford). "I have no agenda at all", I reassured him. I love just hanging out together with him. He's like a brother to me.
Keith was playing a music gig here at home in Bathurst, so he picked me up and drove us back to his place together (about a four-hour drive). These playful cicada shells sat upon his dashboard... quirky fun!
While I had a few stairs I had to navigate inside, I took them slowly and carefully going down - no problems! Yay! Stoopid MS!
We went for a long slow walk along the foreshore of Brisbane Water (with 'Brian' my walker). Water views and I... 100% soul refreshing.
Brisbane Water
Keith and I both have small dingy sailing backgrounds (we sailed at the same club in Manly, albeit a few years apart, coincidentally!). These days he has a small yacht moored nearby. I assured him I had no agendas during our stay, and going for a sail wasn't on any list. It was fine, as his boat was in mid-maintenance-mode and not sailing at the moment. Beautiful spot tho, isn't it?
We dropped into the local Woy Woy library, which (unbeknown to me) has a surprisingly delightful small museum to its favourite local, comedian Spike Milligan (his parents lived at Woy Woy, and he wrote a lot when he stayed there).
Keith and I have a very similar sense of absurd humour, and the Goons/Spike feature a lot in our playful nonsense banter.
A few photos turned out OK, but the one with his trumpet didn't come out too well [oh yes, he could pay! laffs].
These were Spike Milligan's bits and pieces, from his parent's home in Woy Woy.
One night, We watched a DVD of a rare live performance from Spike, in Western Australia in the 1980's. Pure random absurdity... delightfully silly and hilarious. This is it here:
We ended up at the Woy Woy quayside eating fish and chips (freshly caught ocean chips...), pestered by aggressive seagulls. Local pelicans come around for a free feed from the shop scraps, and they hung about Hitchcock-menacingly atop the roof afterwards. We laughed.
During our waterside walk earlier, we noticed what seemed like an abandoned car in a waterside car park. Coincidently, we later bumped into two local Police Officers, doing their rounds on pushbikes. We reported the car, and later bumped into the Officers again in Woy Woy, and they happily told us they were able to check it out OK. That was our 'Community Service' done... [laffs].
One of the fun-random things Keith enjoys doing is seeing how many words he can create out of nine-letter words. He has reams of 'em!
Oh... then there was this hilarious bit of obscure news clipping Keith had discovered years ago...
One day, Keith drove us to a local beach... a wholly unexpected delight for me! Oh yes, I got my toes wet. I felt 'reconnected' somehow with the ocean.
Yours truly.
Later we went to the gorgeous headland Bouddi National Park to soak in some am-maze-ing ocean/Broken Bay water views. While it was hazy, the quietness was breathtaking, along with the views.
Keith
Overlooking the Tasman Sea (left), down Pittwater (centre), and Lion Island in Broken Bay (centre-right).
Overlooking Tallow Beach
Thanks to my stupid MS, I almost fell ass-over-tit climbing down some rocks at the lookout (above)... no harm done, but bloody embarrassing and humiliating. I could fly over rocks like that as a young bloke, pre-MS. Urgh.
After a few days, not wanting to overstay my welcome, I planned my return trip home. Frustratingly, I couldn't catch the normal train/train/bus connections, partly due to my stoopid MS Fingers not wanting to use my phone's search functions properly. Nonetheless, I managed to get home all fine safe and sound, with a delightful trip across the Blue Mountains... felt like coming home happily again with all those great bush views, in contrast to the water views of my last few days.
SINCERELY - THANK YOU, KEITH
➽ I LOVED being able to sit at home just recently and watch live sailing from my old Club in Manly (Sydney Harbour) NSW Australia... 40 years ago, but forever treasured memories. The boats have changed a LOT since then, but the feelings/smell/taste/sensations are all still alive in my memories.
I caught my passion for sailing from my dad - bless 'im!
💯 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 💯
I love but miss my dinghy wet-bum sailing! 🙂😉😎👍
➽ It sounds silly, but I still *forget* that I have #MS at some random moments... like one night recently, wondering why I couldn't find/feel the doona to pull it up in the middle of the night... numb hands! D'oh! 🤦♂️ [U gotta laff!] ...
The MS Song: "Don't You Forget About Me" (Simple Minds).
➽ Absurd proposed South Bathurst Development, right across the road from me: 💥 NO! 💥
😤😑😡😒☹️😩😠💢⚠️‼️😮😖🤬💩😡
→ Sign the Petition: https://chng.it/J2wSx4H2
💥 UPDATE: BYO STREET PARTY 💥
Friday 15 November 2024 6-8pm
Milltown Park, cnr. Busby and Torch Sts
➽ Random Thought: I'm listening to some cricket (surprise surprise!), and one of the commentators mentions that a ball had been hit into the bushes; "be careful of the 'Nope Ropes' "... ie. snakes! Never heard that one before: a snake called a "Nope Rope"! Yes, I laffed out loud.
➽ Updated pics & videos of my sons:
➽ Music I've Enjoyed and Appreciated Recently 🎵👍
➽ Movies I've Watched, Enjoyed and Appreciated Recently 🎦👍
➽ Here's some Fun/Silly Band Names I've stumbled across...
🤭😀😃😄😁😆😂😜
Peas be with ewe
Mal
I really enjoyed these blogposts! Great that you have an empathic friend on the coast who can just let you hang around for a bit. Bloody MS! Still- you got back safely and did the rest of your health a lot of good! Spike Milligan was part of my childhood too- mainly on the radio- shortwave from Brisbane! Then I think I saw him in Adelaide at some stage. Friends and I also still come up with Spike-sayings regularly- you'd fit in well, Mal. I must look him up on YouTube as well. Did you also enjoy Peter Cook and Dudley Moore? I still have an old LP of them babbling away! Something like Behind the Fridge... Also- what about Victor Borge and his piano jokes! I used to cack myself over him when I stayed at my Uncle Alan's in Sans Souci as he was a real fanatic. Ya gotta keep laffin'!
ReplyDeleteThanks you!
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