Wow… when you put your mind to it you sure can pack a lot of fun into one 3 day weekend!!!

Fi, of Kiwifruit fame caught the trans-Tasman bus (I mean, plane) on Friday (at stoopid o’clock, I might add, bless her) to come over to hang out, drink a few margaritas and revisit the odd old haunt or two in my neck of the woods!  I have to say, I’m a little bit stoked, it’s so nice to have people go out of their way to come to see me!!  I just forget to warn them that Chez Deeleea has hot water rationing and a cat that isn’t beyond breaking into the bathroom while one is sitting on the throne (note to self, remind people to lock the door).  Fortunately in that instance dignity remained intact for all concerned…

I could give you the blow by blow account of where we went and what we did, but let’s just say we had a few margaritas topped off with a pretty good turn in Mexican food, we shopped at ‘the Mall’ where cute pajamas were purchased for the little misses and misters at Chez Fi (can anyone say – Tar-zjay dahling?), we scarfed down the obligatory eggs Benedict ( becoming a tradition, I think…) and we spent a good portion of Saturday trekking around Manly/Dee Why and the Botanical Gardens to put our cameras through their paces, we also took in a show (amateur Treasure Island – arrrrgh me hearties) cruised Ikea, saw possibly the most ‘out there’ movie in the Love Guru and negotiated the city awash with pilgrims in town for World Youth Day 2008.  (Didn’t see the Pope but.)

Anyway, I really think I should let the pix speak for themselves…

 

1. Rock Pool, 2. Winkle, 3. Candid Saturday – Manly Beach, 4. Candid Saturday – Manly Beach, 5. Candid Saturday – Manly Beach, 6. Blue Heron, 7. Drinks at the Shore, 8. Training, 9. Rock My Moon, 10. One Shoe Off, 11. Daisy Mae, 12. Off Out to Sea, 13. Cockies

There are a bunch more over on flickr.  Please go and check them out!

Thanks for coming Fi, was so great to have you here!  Everyone else?  When are you coming??

I’m committed. I’ve booked an airfare from Melbourne to Sydney to complete a week I’m planning on spending down that way.
I’ve a bunch of clients who need to pay me to make the trip affordable… but the opportunity to spend a week with Shoe taking it easy in some of the most beautiful landscape in Australia was too good to pass up.
You know? It will be the first holiday I’ve had for me since the epic Brisbane Trip… 2 years ago.
This holiday will be a little different… Shoe and I are both take it easy types… books, sleeping in… the occasional bit of sight-seeing. Low Stress. I’m so desperate – I can’t wait for the 27th!!! We’re hitting the road baby… LOOK OUT!
I’m working like mad to get my job book clear before I leave town and I’m not planning on doing any site work/updates until February…
Heh… brilliant.
This isn’t to say I won’t be taking the laptop… can’t do that… I’ll have blogging to do and photos to process to make you all jealous.
But I’ll be taking books. Lots and Lots of books. And I’ll be reading them too. So don’t wait by the computer…

Some weeks ago the new owner of the agency responsible for the management of the flat we are renting advised us, with written notice, that the payment method that had been previously available to us was to be no more and enclosed with this notice an application form and a new card for us to use instead.
However, this new option we have been offered incurs a fee of $2.10(incl gst) per month whereas the old system cost me nothing (due to the kind of personal account I have with my bank). Furthermore, under the new system I am expected to sign a document allowing a 3rd party to withdraw money from my bank account at appointed times of course, but I’m very cautious when giving this kind of access… paticularly when you see their fee schedule for statements or missed payments etc.
I understand that things come and go, businesses change hands and system efficiencies ebb and flow. I am, after all, not an unreasonable girl. However, I’m not happy to pay for the privilege of paying money to my landlord. I’m not happy to give direct debit access to a company I know nothing of. What I would like to do is pay direct from my bank account into the account of my property manager.
And they won’t do it. It’s ‘not available’… so the only alternate options I now have consist of paying by bank cheque or by money order both of which incure fees that are ridiculous… so… I have, in effect, been hamstrung to this Advantage Card*, which is, in my mind, not advantageous at all.
I have called the Tenancy Tribunal (lovely, lovely people) and apparently my agent is obligated to offer the options in my rental agreement. Options that include direct payment to a bank account…
And so I am waiting with bated breath for a response to my letter indicating that I wish to pay direct or to take up the card and have the agent pay the fees if they’re not prepared to honour my rental agreement…
Hah… take that… and rent’s due on Monday… If you don’t hear from me next week it may be because I’ve been evicted…
*and quite frankly their website looks very low end… hardly inspiring confidence in this web savvy girl…