Week Four
It’s lunchtime Saturday and I’ve just gotten out of bed. Although I woke at about 6.30am, I wasn’t ready for the day and so went back to sleep until the heat eventually forced me to flee the bedroom.
Since arriving I’ve only really thought about work and nothing else, so I declared last weekend a work-free weekend. I might do the same this weekend. Last weekend, I didn’t even listen to the radio. Instead, I sat on the balcony for a while and watched the playing ground opposite my apartment. From what I can see the playing ground is used often.
Last Saturday night, Sue and I went to see “The Whitlams” play with the “West Australian Symphony Orchestra”. They were playing in “Kings Park” which is Perth’s only hill, overlooking the city. Although we’d planned to catch public transport there, I was told by the phone operator from Transperth, normally they would do buses, but tonight they’d “prioritised” the “Meatloaf” concert at the WACA instead. Actions speak louder than words, I guess. Earlier in the day, I’d popped into a local shop to buy a couple of portable chairs. I’d also organised the wine, leaving Sue the job of organising the food. We arrived just as the sun was setting. I’d been invited by the CEO of the WASO to the pre-show VIP drinks area which was good. Quite funny attending, though, since we didn’t know anyone else. The concert was good, although there were quite a few people not far from us who chose to drink and chatter all the way through the first half. We moved to another location during interval, only to be warned there was another group of chatterers near where we were planning to sit. I guess that means we’re old!
I haven’t done much on the home front this week. Mostly it’s just been come home, watch television, and surf the internet. However, there have been some exceptions and it’s been a reasonably busy week with a sporting theme.
On Thursday night I was invited to spend a few hours sailing from the Royal Perth Yacht Club by the WACA, the West Australian Cricket Association. While at first I thought it was sipping a chardy by the banks of the river, I soon realised that it was learning to sail a yacht along the Swan. Luckily, there wasn’t much to do, so I just spent a few hours drinking beer and enjoying the view. I met some really nice people, including a couple who work at the Australian Wheat Board and a nice bloke who does P.R. for the WACA.
Last night I went to the West Australian Football League Hall of Fame Inaugrual Induction Dinner. It was bigger than Ben Hur as 81 people were inducted into the Hall Of Fame, including 8 who were declared “Legends”. Unlike NSW where I generally know most of the people at this type of function by sight, the only people I recognised were the Premier, Geoff Gallop and those from the ABC. Thus, I had to be a little more adventurous in meeting people that I would otherwise be. The dinner and presentation went on for hours and hours, and while there were some touching moments, I didn’t really feel a part of it. Nonetheless, I had a good opportunity to chat with some people from work. I discovered we have a mutual interest in contemporary Australian painting. Incredibly sane people!