Hi it’s a couple of weeks since I’ve had coffee. How have you been? Come on in and pull up a chair and join me for a hot cup of whatever you desire. We have the lot this week but nothing to eat. No wait a minute I have some paleo balls if you’d like one.
If we were having coffee I’d tell you I’m now a decade older but the transition was seamless thanks to Roger and the friends who joined me to celebrate.
I cannot believe that I who has a camera tied to them did not take one single photo. Not of the food beforehand, the guests, the speeches or anything. Luckily a friend took one and normally, like me, she would have taken zillions in the normal course of events. I guess it shows we were all enjoying ourselves too much to think of taking the camera out. We played a game (or rather a quiz) on arrival that forced people to talk to people they didn’t know. It was a great ice breaker and after that people mixed and the conversation flowed. Muffin, whom I was worried would annoy everyone was preoccupied with a guest, a 4 month old Bear coat Sharpei. They played all night. The only hiccough was when Roger was extolling my virtues, Muffin sat behind him and vomited the most technicolour pile of slime. The speech giving degenerated after that.
If we were having coffee I would tell you that the week before the party I did little uni work. There was too much cleaning up to be done and food to be made. So after it was over I have had my nose to the grindstone again. Final edit (I hope) completed and now just doing stuff like formatting and ensuring tables are correct. I am going to submit to my supervisor again on Tuesday and hope that she agrees that this is the final edit. I have managed to cull 20,000 words and perhaps by Tuesday I may get rid of a few more.
If we were having coffee I would tell you that Muffin was desexed on Friday. She didn’t take the anaesthetic too well and has spent a couple of days trying to recover. She went to Roger for comfort on her return – I was the traitor who took her to the vet.
© irene waters 2016
Roger is fearful that she is going to be mentally scarred from this procedure and the collar around her head. She has totally lost the concept of how long she is with the addition and is constantly walking into walls coming to an abrupt halt. I must say though I have never had an animal before that has been so accepting of the contraption. She doesn’t like it but she isn’t constantly trying to get it off. I have to hand feed her but we have worked out a method of drinking that she can manage herself without assistance.
If we were having coffee I’d tell you that we have had an overcast week with a bit of rain this week but absolutely perfect temperatures. I haven’t blogged as much as usual as I am trying to get my work finished and missed some of my favourites including Trent’s Weekly Smile but got to others like the 99 word flash fiction this week about monsters. Times Past is still open for grainy memories.
If I were having coffee I’d tell you that we went to the movies and saw “The Lady in the Van.” It was okay but for me just a little slow moving. My Mum enjoyed it. Alan Bennett’s language was delightful to listen to. I think he must have been a saint in real life to accommodate the van lady for fifteen years or more. We are thinking of seeing ‘Hail Caesar’ the new Coen brothers film. Has anyone seen it yet?
Well I’d better get back to my tables and formatting. Hope to drop by you soon. Have a good week. Thanks to Diana for hosting our weekend coffee share.
Reflections and Nightmares- Irene A Waters (writer and memoirist) 
If we were having coffee I’d say a great big Happy Birthday. You’re only ever one day older than you were yesterday. And you’ll never be this young again, so enjoy it while you can.
If we were having coffee, I’d empathise about Muffin. My boss’s dog had to have an operation and kept chewing her leg so she came to work for a couple of weeks. We miss her now.
If we were having coffee I’d tell you about our trip up north to visit our son. I think I mentioned we were going at our last catch up. We had a great time but February isn’t the time to visit the tropics. It was very humid. We also stopped off in Townsville on the way home and spent 2 nights with a friend there. I was pleased to get home to the dry heat.
If we were having coffee I’d tell you that while we were away we saw a cassowary run across the road. We always used to joke that they were mythical birds but now we’ve both seen real ones so we’ll have to find a different joke.
Looking forward to our next catch up.
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Thanks for the birthday greetings.The vet gave us a talking to (a smack across the wrist ) for taking her collar off (Roger couldn’t stand it any longer) but luckily Muffin seems to be leaving the wound alone (so far).
February definitely isn’t the time to visit the tropics and it was a hot, humid one this year. Although it is only for a short time the humidity is what drains your energy. I can understand you being glad to be home. I think there are quite a number of cassawarys up north but down south you never hear mention of them, only emus. I am about to pay our deposit on our cruise to New Zealand at Christmas. I notice you mentioned that you had a very noisy cabin. What deck was that on and I might try and avoid it. We almost gave up the idea as the thought of all those people and then picking a cabin seemed just so difficult without any knowledge. I guess we will have knowledge if we go on another in the future.
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I’m pleased to hear Muffin is being a good patient. I hope she’s fully recovered soon.
I’ve been looking through my emails trying to find the cabin we were in on our cruise but I may have deleted them all after we got home.
The problem was that they were directly above one of the bars that had live music until after midnight. There were 8 of us on this cruise. Between us we’d probably done around 50 or 60 cruises and none of us had ever had this problem before. So I would suggest you look at the deck plan for the ship (these are all available on all the cruise websites) and choose a cabin that has cabins on the decks above and below. Please don’t let our experience put you off. The rest of the trip was great and the food on Princess was the best I’ve had on any ship. Not that I’m particularly experienced. My sister and father are the ones with the best record in our group. But they certainly agreed.
When you book your 2nd cruise you’ll wonder what you were worried about. We did. But our first one we asked so many questions it’s a wonder the travel agent didn’t write us off their books.
And don’t worry about all those people. There are always quiet corners on the big ships. You can do as much or as little as you like. It’s a great holiday.
If you know anyone else who’s been on a cruise, ask them for their ideas about cabins. Everyone has their preferences. My sister likes inside ones because there’s no daylight to wake them up. We like outside ones because we like the natural light. We were definitely spoilt getting moved to a balcony cabin after complaining for several days. They’re more expensive but we really loved having the fresh air as well as the light.
And after me rambling, our coffee might have gone cold. I’ll leave you catch up with other friends. But do let me know if you have any cruise questions. If I can’t answer them I know my sister will be able to.
Cheers, Jenny.
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Thanks for that fantastic rundown on the ship. I read it to Roger and he feels a little easier. We have now booked and I think if we worked it out well we have taken your advice and are between decks of cabins. We took a balcony although Roger is like your sister liking darkness but I will probably love it as I love the light and if necessary we can hide on our balcony if we find there are too many people for us to cope with. I can see my biggest problem will probably be two weeks without internet and that will probably be good for me to totally veg out with a good book or two….
Cheers Irene
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Happy belated birthday! Hope your dog forgives you for taking her to the vet! I joined in Weekend Coffee share this week too – first time – enjoyed it. 🙂
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Glad you’ve joined in Marje. Thanks for the birthday greetings. See you for coffee next week.
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You’re welcome Irene. 🙂
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Congratulations on your birthday, Irene, and welcome to the decade. It sounds like you had a wonderful celebration, except for Muffin’s interruption. Perhaps she wasn’t getting enough attention! I hope she recovers quickly from the surgery and forgives you soon.
Congratulations on completing your final edit (hopefully). That must be a great feeling. I look forward to reading your finished product.
Have a great week.
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Thanks Norah. She has forgiven us but I don’t know that I have forgiven her. Today she ate my spectacles. I’m not very happy as I can’t read a thing without them. Luckily I have an old pair that I can make do with until I can get to the optometrist. I struggle with formatting. Nothing seems to want to stay where I want it but it will get there. Thanks. You can be sure to know when I have submitted. You’ll hear my shout of glee in Brisbane.
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I’m looking forward to hearing that shout! What a great feeling that will be!
Poor Muffin. Poor Irene. It is dreadful to be lacking in sight. I know what you mean about formatting. It can be frustrating at times and seemingly for no good reason. Best wishes for completing soon.
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Thanks Norah.
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Happy Birthday! Glad you are almost done with that enormous project. I hope it was the final edit.
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Thanks Trent. I hope its the end also.
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Happy birthday! Perhaps muffins interruption was from being too excited, but she sure knows how to get attention during a party!
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She achieved her aim in a very colourful fashion.
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Happy birthday! Your party sounds wonderful. Pets and children tend to take the most opportune moments to vomit. Even in the “cone of shame,” Muffin manages to look cute. She wears it well. I haven’t seen the new Coen brothers movie yet, but would very much like to. I enjoy their movies.
Thank you for the coffee. 🙂
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Thanks Robin. I don’t think it bothered her that greatly but it bothered my husband so it is now removed. If she’d kept it on my glasses would probably still be whole. Hopefully we’ll go this week or next at the latest.
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Happy birthday, and congrats on what sounds like a fun party and a lot of work on your writing!!
Hope Muffin is feeling better. Surgery + the cone of shame makes for a pretty miserable puppy week.
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Thanks Diana. And to add to Muffin’s shame she ate my spectacles today. It must be love or she’d be out the door for sure.
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haha…Oh dear! Our pups do have a way of trying our patience sometimes.
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And then they do something endearing and all is forgiven and forgotten. 🙂
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That does seem the way of it!
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Happy birthday Irene! Can we guess how many? And amazing to think about editing out 20,000 words. No messing with you is there? No wonder Muffin favours Roger at the moment!
(If we were having coffee you’d know I didn’t mean it)
Lxx
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Thanks Lisa. Yes you can guess…… Someone at U3A congratulated me on reaching 70. I rationalised it out – retirement age is 65 and you have to be retired to be a member and Roger turned 70 last year. That is a much better alternative to looking an age I’m not. I’ve saved those words. One day they will come in handy. Muffin knows where her dinner comes from – she only ostracised me for one night.
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Tee hee! What words they will be! You don’t look much older than me xx
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Happy belated birthday. I am glad your party was a successful and a memory for later years..
Muffin should okay after awhile, it saves a lotvof hassle later. Good luck on your book.
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Yes, I certainly wouldn’t want a whole heap of puppies.
Thanks for the luck. This week I have needed it.
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Happy Birthday! I know from very long experience at being late on the scene, that’s it’s okay to wish a happy birthday days after the event! Your celebration sounds very successful. Yes, preparation does take a person off track, but you will catch up. Would love to know what you are working on. Is it a thesis?
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Thanks for birthday greetings. I am doing a research masters and my thesis is made up of a creative work (a sequel to my first memoir) and an exegesis. The thesis title More Me: How can a memoirist maintain vibrancy in a sequel memoir? I have completed the creative work but the editing on the exegesis never seems to come to an end but it will ….one day…..in the near future. You’ll probably hear my shout for joy in your hemisphere when it finally is submitted.
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So glad your birthday was a fun and friendly event, but sorry to hear that Muffin over partied. You’re on your last leg of your thesis – can hardly wait to hear that it’s done and has been accepted.
I don’t usually tell you what I’ve been up to, but this week, I will. I’ve started a series of short stories that will become one book. They’re based very loosely on my grandparents and my parents when children. Since I know very little about this history, most is fiction, not even creative fiction, just simple fiction. It will give me a chance to impose a theme and order on what otherwise seems to be chaos. I’m excited about my new project but also need to get those queries written and sent out to agents for the other three books awaiting publication.
Run having coffee with you, Irene.
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Thank you so much for sharing your new project. I’m almost as excited as you – you know I love lives, memoirs and experiences of Times Past. If you are successful in creating order from chaos I want to know every last detail of how you did it. I could use some help. The waiting time between getting the letters out and for some kind of acceptance, rejection but in my case mainly silence is hard to take. I hope you are successful in that pursuit. You just have to keep at it. So glad you joined me for coffee – I had fun too.
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Irene, you just gave me a great idea for a post for my blog. I’m going to write about the inspiration and strategy for the stories and will post soon on Ink Flare. Thanks for a this idea.
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Oh boy. I’d never thought that one day I’d be a muse (even if only for one post). Will watch out for it. You’re welcome. I love being collaborative in whatever form it takes.
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Ugh – how about FUN having coffee with you, Irene. (Run having coffee – sheesh. OK, it’s 2:30 AM – I need to get some sleep.)
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Some sleep would be good but I knew what you meant. I put it down to small device too large finger. That is my usual problem when it comes to small errors in spelling.
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How I would have loved to been among those present for your birthday celebrations! I agree that sometimes moments are too precious in the memory building capacity to slow down for camera pictures. Muffin’s contribution is funny, though I do hope she is feeling better from that experience and her vet visit. I once had both my dogs in cones and they kept colliding with one another. There must be a better invention! Wow, sounds like you’ve made terrific progress on your uni work! Thanks for the cup of coffee.
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That would have been lovely to have you present but I have not given up hope of one day meeting and that will be good. Thanks for sharing coffee with me Charli.
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