An OK Read

The Swimming Pool by Louise Candlish
Oh this was tedious. It was a fairly good plot, which I quickly picked up on, but at 457 pages, a lot of the dialogue was superfluous.
It's summer when Elm Hill Lido opens, having stood empty for years. For Natalie Steele - wife, mother, teacher - it offers freedom from the tightly controlled routines of work and family. Especially when it leads her to Lara Channing, a charismatic former actress with a lavish bohemian lifestyle, who seems all too happy to invite Natalie into her elite circle.
Soon Natalie is spending long days at the pool, socialising with new friends and basking in a popularity she didn't know she'd been missing. Real life, and the person she used to be, begins to feel very far away.
But is such a change in fortunes too good to be true? Why are dark memories of a summer long ago now threatening to surface? And, without realising, could Natalie have been swept dangerously out of her depth?

   

∼ Happy Reading∼ 

Polly x

St George's Day

Happy St George's Day April 23rd

  

St George, the patron saint of England is known as a heroic knight in shining armour slaying a ferocious, fire-breathing dragon.

∼ Be safe and well∼ 

Polly x 

Hot Cross Buns

🐤 Happy Easter 🐤

daffodils + sunshine = happiness

"Hot cross buns, hot cross buns

one a penny two a penny hot cross buns.

If you have no daughters give them to your sons

one a penny two a penny hot cross buns".

The nursery rhyme "One a penny, two a penny, Hot Cross Buns" emerged from the tradition of street sellers hawking Hot Cross Buns. It was first published in "The Christmas Box" in London in 1798.

The St Alban Bun is thought to be the original Hot Cross Bun which was first produced on the site of St Albans Cathedral by a medieval monk, Brother Thomas Rocliffe. According to "Ye Book of St Albans", in 1361 Thomas “caused a quantity of small sweet spiced cakes, marked with a cross, to be made”.
The cakes, which were given away on Good Friday, “so pleased the palates of the people who were the recipients that they became talked about, and various were the attempts to imitate the cakes of Brother Rocliffe all over the country, but the recipe of which was kept within the walls of the Abbey”.

In 1592 hot cross buns were briefly banned in England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. The ban was not intended to be a permanent restriction, but rather a measure to ensure the buns were not seen as a replacement for the traditional Easter bread. The queen and her court considered them "too special to be eaten any other day" and issued a decree prohibiting their sale except on specific holidays, such as Good Friday and Christmas.

I wonder what Brother Thomas would make of the array of hot cross buns produced today.

Apple and cinnamon, triple chocolate

salted caramel, rhubarb and custard

M&S has a bun for everone!

There are ‘luxury’, ‘very berry’ and ‘extra fruity’ versions. There are buns filled with fudge, and I saw some Kit Kat ones in Australia.

It's enough to send Brother Rocliffe fleeing back to the safety of St Albans Abbey!

Just give me a nice traditional sticky fruit bun 😋

∼ Be safe and well∼ 

Polly x 

Holiday Round Up

I've been home for just over a week. I had good flights, even the 14 hour one passed very well - I slept for a few hours, watched 3 films, read my book, did some puzzles, and of course eating. 

oOo

The last of my holiday photos. We love markets, and the West End market is a big one. Lots of food stalls and every other kind of stall you could imagine.

Books

Cheese

Just about everything you need for your pet dog or cat

ties and dicky bows                           hats

mushrooms

plants

salami

sunglasses, or as they call them in Oz, and I now call them - sunnies

fruit & veg

delicious breads and pastries

and even a psychic

I'm missing my daughter but we all talk and post on Whatsapp, and it's nice spending time with my eldest daughter.

∼ Be safe and well∼ 

Polly x 

Out And About

Felons is an industrial brewery and restaurant

Situated underneath the iconic Story bridge it has great views of the river and the city.

The brewery takes its name from the true tale of four felons, who, in 1823, on their way to Illawarra from Sydney were blown off course and found themselves lost at sea and ended up shipwrecked on Moreton Island.

The pigeons dive in as soon as people leave!

oOo

Another day, elsewhere, a short walk across the Neville Bonner bridge takes you to the casino building, the round one in the middle.

We didn't want to go to the casino,

just up to the sky deck for the views and cocktails. 

This was scary. A glass floor above the freeway below. I knew the floor was safe but I had to hold onto a post before stepping out onto it!

That's my foot on the right.

My daughter and S had margaritas

I'm not good with lunchtime alcohol so I had a very nice coffee 😊

We decided against the overpriced restaurants and opted instead for a very nice Vietnamese restaurant in the city. Although we did agree that my daughter and S should treat themselves to a meal here for a special occasion.

∼ Be safe and well∼ 

Polly x 

Arlo and Lenny

Last year my daughter and her partner had to have their beloved dog Lloyd put to sleep. They knew it was coming, he was very old and was losing strength in his hind legs. They didn't think they would get another dog, but 6 months later they saw Lenny on a rescue site and they knew they had to adopt him.

He's 2, loveable and very mischievous

Looking smart for "Take Your Dog to Work Day"

He was transfixed by something across the road, we didn't know what,

then my daughter spotted it

you can just see a neighbour's cat through the bars on the left

Arlo is still as handsome

and still taking over the dog bed!

but his favourite place is on the balcony

where Lenny can't resist pestering him

but then Arlo enjoys teasing him

After much discussion the three of us came to the conclusion that they both enjoyed the sparring because, if necessary, Arlo could deliver a mighty blow with his claws and Lenny would back off immediately.

∼ Be safe and well∼ 

Polly x 

Botanic Gardens

I love parks and Brisbane City Botanic Gardens is up there on my favourites list.

After a walk from the ferry we stopped at the lovely tranquil

Gardens Club Cafe for coffee and little ring doughnuts.

The Ibis get everywhere.

They're quite pretty but such scavengers, everyone calls them 'bin chucks'.

All this loveliness in the heart of the city.

What a lovely place to relax for lunch if you work nearby

 The beautiful iconic Kangaroo Bridge is at the edge of the park. We walked over and back again before catching the ferry home.

The lovely old Customs House building

∼ Be safe and well∼ 

Polly x