We went to have our hair cut on Thursday. We thought we'd try the hairdresser in Mount Clear who has a sign on the window that says that no appointment in necessary. Alas - on Thursday an appointment was necessary. Only two hours hence, but even so.
We dropped in to the butcher for some supplies. The butcher is always well used, but on Thursday it was unusually busy.
We popped out a fish shop in Wendouree in search of some fresh fish. It's not a bad fish shop, but it's a bit out of the way for regular use. Must find out where Ian gets the Christmas crayfish from. I'm fairly sure it isn't right on the other side of Ballarat. The fish shop wasn't particularly busy.
It was spectacularly busy in the supermarkets' shared car park. No parking spaces to be found at all. This struck me as odd. It's not as though it was Christmas Eve.
It was only after we had gone back to the hairdresser, and she said that Wednesdays and Thursdays were usually the best days to drop in, being quieter than the other days she is open - it was only then that we clocked that Friday was a public holiday in Victoria. A public holiday because on Saturday was the Grand Final of the Australian Football League. Seemed a bit odd to us to have a public holiday just because the following day there is a major sporting fixture. You would have thought that the following Monday would be better, so people could nurse their Victory or Commiseration Hangovers in peace. But there you go.
Still doesn't quite explain the frenzy in the supermarkets. They were open pretty much their normal hours on the Friday, and even on the Saturday and Sunday (no restricted Sunday Trading Hours in Oz).
I didn't watch the football final. I am not absolutely interested in Aussie Rules footie, but I did have a passing interest in this particular match. The Western Bulldogs, against all expectations, had managed to get a place in the final. This is a team that has been followed in its various manifestations and through various trials and tribulations by my ex husband, by all three of my children and by various other family members for many, many years. Mind you, it did pretty much split the family in half. A substantial number of other family members follow the Sydney Swans who were the other team in the final. Those of us who follow other teams, or no teams, swung in behind one of the finalists, mostly the Bulldogs. I didn't watch the match because the Bulldogs absolutely never win if I am watching, and I had, of course, swung in behind the Doggies. They don't do all that well if I follow the quarter time scores. At half time they were two points down -so I took Sam the (not Bull)dog for a long walk in the forest. We had a lovely, muddy, splashy walk. And got back to find that The Bulldogs had yet again defied expectation and managed to snatch a win. Much jubilation. Unless you are a Swans supporter!
Lindsey is back from her jaunt around Alaska, Canada and Japan. Her plane got in at nearly midnight on Saturday. Matt went to pick her, Bethan and Sage up and he, Sage and Lindsey stayed the night in the flat. I assume they took Bethan home! We tootled down on Sunday morning to pick Lindsey up. We all had brunch in the coffee shop below the flat before Matt and Sage went home and we returned to Ballarat where we were greeted by Sam - and quite an interesting wind and rain storm. Undeterred, Lindsey and I decided we would take Sam for a short walk. This was foreshortened by Sam refusing to walk in the wind and the rain, and by Lindsey turning her ankle quite badly, rendering her unable to walk and pretty much unable to speak (apart from words which couldn't possibly be quoted in my family-friendly blog!!!). It's very swollen and quite blue this morning. She's hobbling around aided by two short walking sticks. I think I might remain on Sam walking duties for the next little while!!
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