Today was the first day back at the day job after three weeks or so off. Up at 5am, S had been up all night and wanted a lift, so off at the usual time with mum for coffee and catch up in Mt Lawley. From there, in to the city and to the office. G was in, and so were K & C, but everyone else was either working remotely or on leave. That made for a quiet day.
Other than that, no real reading done. I’m behind on editing etc, so lots to do. Got a draft novella in email too, so that’s something to be working on, as well as catching up on everything, and recommended reading. Yay.
Well, another less-than-great night’s sleep. Awake at 4.45am and didn’t get back to sleep, so I sat down with a cup of coffee and spent two or three hours editing. Just catching up on stuff. The family started to appear around 8 am, which was nice. Around 9 am Jess, Sophie, and I headed over to Fez for breakfast – a birthday treat from Jess, which was lovely.
Got home around 10.30 and the family surprised me with some lovely, thoughtful gifts. Jess gave me thongs, a tie, and a luggage tag. Sophie gave me a gift voucher to a patisserie, and Marianne gave me some art and a suitcase. Lovely and kind.
Had a bit of a dizzy spell after that, so crashed before heading over to Karalee on Preston for a birthday lunch with the extended family. The place is really lovely and went down well, especially with mum. We bumped into some family friends which was nice, and then Mum, Barbara, and Stephen gave me some very generous and thoughtful gifts too. A very nice time indeed.
Got home and helped Sophie with some minor editing on her script and watched a bit of cricket. Along the way stumbled across a cache of gift vouchers from three years ago that are still valid this month, so need to rush with those. Feeling very stupid about that, but I always seem to lose track. Have to do better.
And that’s day 2 of the 2023. Got some editing letters to send today and a lot of stuff backed up to clear up. Busy times.
Another probably ill-fated attempt to restore the old diary-taking muscles I developed when blogging was still a thing. Let’s see how we go.
Last night was a quiet one. The girls and I dropped around at my mum’s to have a quick glass of champagne and to wish her a Happy New Year (far too early), and then home for a low-key dinner and our annual re-watch of Carrie Pilby. Sophie and I then exchanged lists, and to bed.
I woke too early, but since Sophie hadn’t slept at all, we chatted for a couple hours while I tried to emerge from my slumbers and focus. I didn’t quite manage that, but I did end up heading over to East Perth to meet Alisa for our first catch-up in far too long. It was terrific. We chatted, caught up, and just basically hung out like it was forever ago. A lovely way to spend part of New Year’s Day.
And now the girls are out and I should be editing, so…
I am ridiculously sentimental and have a real weakness for silly and romantic things. Christmas has always been a favourite time of the year, even though it only seems to become more stressful and complicated with time. One thing I really love is a good Christmas song, and so I thought that since this is my blog and these are days of self-indulgence, I would repeat my list of my Top 5 Christmas Songs, which is unchanged since I first posted it back in 2009.
Because I’m older many of these are a little melancholy, but they’re all ones I’ve come to love.
1. Fairy Tale of New York, The Pogues with Kirsty MacColl
This one’s the gold standard in indy Christmas songs. MacColl and McGowan are perfect, even if the story they tell is a sad one.
2. How to Make Gravy, Paul Kelly
Another sad Christmas song. A man calling from prison to make contact with his family. Probably my favourite Australian Christmas song ever.
3. White Wine in the Sun, Tim Minchin
Though this one is a close runner-up. The image of the family drinking white wine in the sun is one that resonates when you live in a place where Christmas Day itself is often blisteringly hot.
4. Happy Xmas (War is Over), John Lennon and Yoko Ono
One of the first great rock/pop Xmas songs, and a Lennon song I like better than “Imagine” these days.
5. Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town, Bruce Springsteen and the (mighty mighty) E Street Band
But most great Xmas songs aren’t sad. Every now and then you have to turn to the hard-rockin’ E Street Band to kick out the jams and party at year’s end.
There’s Christmas and then there’s Krampus. Here at Coode Street, there’s nothing quite like a little bit more, and as a very special holiday bonus Gary sat down with the wonderful M. Rickert to talk about what she’d been reading, what she’d recommend, and her fabulous Krampus tale, Lucky Girl, one of our favourites and perfect for a cold, winter’s night.
As always, our thanks to Mary and hope you enjoy the episode.
