I’m feeling Summertime is here on the Bellarine Peninsula.

It’s time for new thongs, with Australian theme, surfboards and VW Kombis. 

The outdoor/indoor haven has simply grown there! There is garden incense,  little bird ornaments, a calming ambience and room on the little table for a cooling beverage. I can hear the ice cubes clinking. The umbrella has no purpose – it is for effect only as I sit here, book in hand, thankful I have a break from tours whilst admiring the bird bath and sweating in the tropical-like heat. There are water views from the upstairs balcony, however I’m avoiding the view as it is so stinking hot up there, I would need more than the umbrella to cool down and thongs are necessary to avoid scorched feet. It is always stinking hot in Summer. I like that term. It is simple. Reminds me of Summer childhoods, always so hot.

Those trees out back will have to be cut or they will soon obstruct the view of the Bay and the You Yangs mountains. In my mind, The Mediterranean is looking nice! I have dis-continued the paw-paw cream on my eye area (as instructed ) where that nice Doctor arc-welded a patch of skin the size of a gold coin to remove a lesion and so am hoping to let the body heal itself. Plus sunlight may hasten the healing process, just not direct sunlight, just a little dappled bit, filtered through the potted plants which surround me.  Having the eye/face blackened and burned is akin to losing a tooth – in front . You try not to draw attention to it but you can see them looking at it, intrigued, so it’s best to wear sunglasses or put a little band-aid on there. Not that any one cares.

Later, in the afternoon, I will move to the front rooms of the house. These rooms remain cool, no matter the Season. The quietness is intense here. It is perfect for concentration, reading, writing and certainly good for meditation practices but sometimes the quiet gets to me and I have to seek out some noise, be it outdoors where there is the close hum of traffic, bird song or sometimes muted conversations heard from  neighbouring properties. At the height of the holiday season, the buzz of jet-skis can be clearly heard out on the water as they fly and bounce across the water, leaving sprays of white in their wake. Loud music is beneficial at these times – – generally the louder the better! As shadows creep across the lawn, it indicates the exact time by the clocks. I am usually correct. After 3:30 pm is the time to water the wilting plants, the roses, the pumpkin patch, the herb garden. The lawn dies on the first day of Summer. It will not recover until the rains come in drenching downpours if we are lucky leading up to Winter. If I miss a day of these chores in Summer, the weeds will take over and the plants die. I think the trees are stressed as they have been dropping their leaves for months now. This usually happens in Autumn and is a full-time job raking and clearing them. Too hot a job right now.

I am lucky to have room to move here, to create little havens of peace and tranquillity or themed rooms inside which project my interests and personality.

There is still so much to get done in every aspect of life.