Reney’s Neighborhood

I'm slightly wired. I'm on the pseudoephedrine. I think its easier to buy an ecstasy tablet here than it is to buy a cold tablet. You have to hand over your license to get a packet of codrals. I guess if something happens to this pack and I go and try to buy another pack tomorrow I'll have the swat team smashing down my front door looking for a cooker. So I started the day with a pseudo and a coffee. So I feel slightly wired, yet still unwell. And dehydrated. I wonder when they say on the pack to avoid alcohol do they really mean it. I'm supposed to be going out tonight.

I have been doing some serious birthday party planning. My son turns 1 early in August. We don't usually throw parties so I think this one is getting a little out of hand. It started as an innocent BBQ party but now it has grown into a whole outdoor affair.  Complete with jumpy things.

So far the amount of people invited is roughly 154 people. Yeah. I don't expect everyone to show since a few are out of state. It'll be a big bash anyhow. We're getting a huge cake and a slightly smaller one for the little guy to demolish.

In other news... can I say Baby T is not so "baby" anymore? Yep, that's right folks, he decided he wants to walk! It was mostly a nightly ritual - he would walk back and forth between my husband and I... and that was it. Now the distance between us gets longer and longer and if I don't pay too close attention I'm finding T launching himself off of whatever he's holding onto. 

I'm getting my hospital bag ready.

Teenage girls. Aren't they sweet. I mean just look at those sweet little faces.

I just don't think we're taking full advantage of the natural resources teenage girls have to offer us. If we did, we'd never have to dig for coal again. If we could just find a way to harness all that attitude teenage girls produce, we could use it to produce enough energy to light the world. And there'd be a never ending supply of it.

Actually something funny - My eldest daughter - Kimba - has been so disgusting and bitchy lately that I wrote her this long email detailing exactly what I thought of her. Then I get up this morning and thought to myself she wasn't too pissed off about it and then I check my emails and there the bloody thing is - come back to me, unable to be sent it tells me for some bloody reason. Typical.

Little-girls

Little girls - I'm telling you, they're over rated.

Big-girls

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If there is one person in australia I feel really sorry for, it is the girl in the photo below.

Every time the media want to have a rave about how the teenagers of Newcastle are all binge drinking, violent ratbags, they drag out this photo to go with the story. And here she is again in todays newcastle herald. Always gives me a laugh when I wonder how many years she's going to have to face it. And I always think of her Mum. a proud moment for her to see her daughter like this. Over and over again. Give her a break guys!!

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These are from our picnic near the beach in town.  The friend we went with grew up in Wollongong so knew the best spots to go and where to buy the best fish and chips.  We had originally planned to go and visit the science museum but the kids pretty tired from walking around the temple all morning so decided to save that for another trip.

Apparently, these cannons were put in to defend Wollongong from a potential Japanese attack during WW2.  My friend remembered refusing to have photos taken of her astride the cannon back when she got married in 1985! 

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My daughter took this next photo of her friend.  It really captures her friend's nature perfectly.   

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Perfect hills for rolling down.

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No escape from WYD pilgrims even in Wollongong!  This lot were from Santa Ana, Califorrnia and were pretty tuneless. 

WYD pilgrims

All tuckered out and ready to go home.

Home time

I was brushing my teeth last night and when I glanced in the mirror I realised I looked like Jon Bon Jovi.

Its a funny day when you can wake up in the morning and think you look like Farrah Fawcett and go to bed thinking you look like Jon Bon Jovi.

It's the hair.

Flicks - they're coming back.

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WOLLONGONG!

Yes, that was the mystery location of the Chinese temple in my other photos.  I took the kids on a little overnight trip down there.  We had planned to holiday a bit further afield but my husband was unable to take leave from work because he works in an area affected by the World (Catholic) Youth Day (week!) mayhem in Sydney.  Wollongong was just the right distance (51km from Sydney) for a trip on my own with the kids.  It is also one of those places that I had always meant to go to but never got around to probably because it is so close to home.  The idea of staying at the temple was really serendipitous.  I had always been intrigued by the sight of the temple which we often pass on our way further south.  It kind of just appears out of nowhere beside the freeway in the middle of an industrial area.  I didn't even know you could stay there until I looked at the website on Sunday to see about visiting during the day.  I thought it would be an interesting cultural experience for the kids who are already quite interested in Chinese culture through their Kung Fu associations. 

On the way down on Monday, we stopped off for a few hours to visit an old friend of mine who lives in a little seaside village called Scarborough.  This entailed driving over the incredibly scenic but hair-raising Sea Cliff Bridge. We had a lovely lunch at my friends place and then took all the kids to the beach.  We deliberately didn't let them change into swimsuits as we didn't want them going in swimming in mid-Winter.  This didn't stop them though!  Two got soaked in their clothes and my son just stripped off all his clothes and went in naked! 

Scarb beach boys

The sun goes down pretty early in Scarborough because of the escarpment so we headed off for Wollongong and the Nan Tien Temple shortly after 5pm, arriving just in time for dinner.  This was held in the Dining Hall in the middle of the temple complex and was a vegetarian Chinese steamboat meal eaten with the Buddhist 'reverends' (I would have called them nuns).  The food was delicious although the kids mainly filled up on rice and fruit.  The reverends were very impressed at the kids attempts to use chop sticks (even though their technique was terrible).  A couple of friends also joined us for dinner and to spend the night at the Pilgrim Lodge.

Here are some pictures of the Lodge.

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Entrance to Pilgrim Lodge:

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I hadn't known what to expect when I booked it but it was really very comfortable, ie, the rooms just like motel rooms and quite reasonably priced.  The dinner was also great value at $10 for adults and $5 for kids.

The next morning we had breakfast in the dining room.  The kids were thrilled at this as they again got to serve themselves and they had quite an interesting selection of food including cereal, fruit, mini croissants, milo etc.  We then spent the entire morning wandering around the temple complex.  There was so much to see and the kids had a great time playing and also had an opportunity to participate in temple activities such as placing candles on the altar of one temple, learning to pray to the Buddha, ringing bells and joining in a calligraphy class.  The reverends recognised us from dinner the previous night so gave the kids special attention.  Most were Chinese (from various countries including one we spoke to who was from Malaysia) but there were also quite a few Westerners working at the complex and even one Western reverend. 

Here are some more photos we took.

Temple grounds

Waiting for temple to open:

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In the gardens near the Lodge:

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Funny faces

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One thing I loved about the temple was how open it was to the surrounding community.  Apart from the accommodation in the lodge and the meals which are open to everyone, they also run things like meditation and cooking classes, HSC study camps, baby blessings etc etc.  They also have plans to build a university which will host students from all over the world.  It is great that something like this exists in Wollongong which is really a very traditional, working class Aussie kind of place. 

More on the 'Gong itself to follow.

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I only noticed this after I had downloaded the photo from my camera. 

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Atonement

Ian McEwan

The answer and more photos to follow.