Bead Bonanza

Last Saturday, Arthur, our adorable Aussie handyman, came to paint the inside of our place. After seeing me beading the week before, he was excited to tell me about some beads he'd seen at a garage sale on the way over.


I was preparing my lasagna for the Bake-Off and hesitated, thinking that it wouldn't be worth my time. However, since he had gone to all the trouble of bringing me the lady's phone number, I felt obligated to call. After speaking with her, I decided I should take a look since beads are so expensive here. Arthur took me over there and was I glad!


Wow - all this for only $200, including a bead board, the wooden tray above that makes into a six-foot table, and the box full of cotton fiber! This ought to keep me busy until our shipment arrives with my glass goodies. Good on ya, Arthur, and thanks, mate!

Double-Time for Napping

None of the patients have mistaken George for Eminem's manager yet but the patients are sicker than the average Mountain Crest patient with many schizophrenics. As the staff say, they are quite mad. George still enjoys working with the patients and likes his co-workers. Many new nurses have come so he's no longer the new guy. He's even beginning to understand most of what they say to him.

One of the things that does drive George crazy (no pun intended) is that they send patients on leave and then give their beds away. When the patients return, the nurses are the ones who have to hear all the complaints and find them accommodations. The hospital is very full so it is a challenge. George's co-workers say it has been worse in the past, with patients lined up on gurneys in the hallway and even outside. They even stashed some in the parked ambulances. Unfortunately, being a government facility, administration is largely comprised of politicians instead of medical personnel. It's enough to drive one to drink!

We have yet to check out the hospital bar on a Friday night because George is usually working. His schedule has sucked for the last couple of months with Tuesdays and Wednesdays off, making it difficult to plan social activities with those who have normal weekday jobs.

George wishes for a better schedule but loves the overtime pay and differential pay for evening and night shifts. Those of you who know him know that it's hard for him to resist overtime. Here they have an even greater incentive for double-shifts. When he works an evening and a night shift together, he gets time and a half for the first two hours of the night shift and double-time for the last eight hours. If it's not busy, he gets a nap during the night. To top it off, he is allowed to come to work four hours late the following day and gets paid for that. Sort of makes up for the lack of technology!

After working a lot this week, the scheduling office asked one of George's co-workers to find out if he'd like to work another double-shift. George replied that he'd rather eat a truckload of dog poop. Not batting an eye, his colleague told the person on the phone, "No, George is dining out tonight." I'm so glad people are able to maintain their senses of humor despite having such stressful jobs.

Lasagna Bake Off

Our neighborhood has very Italian roots and we love it. And, as anyone who knows us knows, we also love food. So how better to marry the two, but with the Annual Lilly Street Lasagna Bake Off?

These judges take their taste-testing seriously.

Jenny and Paul, at #10 Lilly Street, have organized this event for the past eleven years. They invite everyone on Lilly Street and neighboring streets to participate. T-shirts and aprons are produced to commemorate the occasion and people test recipes all year in hopes of winning the big trophy.



Originally, we had planned to go with Veronica and Vito and we were really looking forward to trying Veronica's authentic lasagna and spending the afternoon with them. Unfortunately, their daughter suffered from a burst appendix so Veronica rushed to England to be with her. George worked a double-shift the night before and was sleeping during the early part of the festivities. Luckily, I am not shy and wasn't going to miss the fun.

Christine and Priscilla enjoy their nibblies - prawns.

As usual, a wonderful opportunity to meet new friends arose. I was on my way over to Lilly Street to take some photos for you folks after delivering my lasagna. En route, I saw a lady struggling to get a folding chair out of her car. I offered some assistance and we chatted on our way to the party site. Christine is recovering from hip surgery and was still game to party. Australians are a hearty lot! Christine invited me to join Priscilla, her friend and Lilly Street resident, and the rest of their group.

While there, I met Sally, with whom I really hit if off. I was telling her about these beads I bought and we decided to go back to the Casa so she could see them. Sally couldn't believe it when she came up to the door; she and her daughter lived here three and a half years ago when they moved to Perth. It is a small world indeed! She is astounded we still have the velvet curtains and chairs.

Back on topic! Entries were accepted for three categories: Lilly Street residents, non-Lilly Street residents and out of the square (we'd call it thinking outside the box). I don't think they were ready for something as strange as my entry, Lasagna Ole, a made-up concoction with chicken, black beans and other ingredients Italians don't normally use. The out of the square entry that won was (gasp!) vegetarian lasagna. Seriously, I found out later they have definite criteria for judging - many layers, finely diced ingredients, firm lasagna, no browned edges, etc.

1st place winner, Lilly Street, celebrates by holding up his trophy.

The non-Lilly Street winner thanks his gran for her sauce recipe. Awww!

Jenny, the ring leader of this event, won a door prize and honorable mention for most improved lasagna. We'd be suspicious, but she was harangued for how vile her lasagna was the previous year so we forgave her for being an ungracious host by winning. They threatened to call child protection services last year after tasting her entry. : ) Jenny should be a stand-up comedian; her emceeing was extremely funny. I hope I get to know her better.

Jenny hugs her well-deserved door prize.

All generations are represented and a good time was had by all. Even George managed to enjoy it after he woke up, evidenced by the satisfied look on his face in this photo.