NOVEMBER ROUND UP

So I got my Mojo back in November!!!

Things started to turn around for me, became less stressful and my anxiety started to pull back. Being back in therapy certainly helped as did lovely friends, but things just started being less awful and less intense. The universe eased off, lol and that was very good!!!

Having a month off also was a huge help.

As always the month starts celebrating my brother-in-laws birthday. This time we dined at the Junction Inn Hotel, located on the river at Raymond Terrace, and always a great meal.

My final week at work was very hectic but also included some great moments. I love our Movie Book Club group and the fabulous discussions we have. This month we discussed the book, The Devil and the White City which was a great historical story about the Chicago World Fair and spurred amazing discussion. and Friday night was our Movie Night, which keeps growing and growing. This is thanks to my fabulous colleague T who runs the show and charms our attendees Bill Collins style. The movie was the cult classic, What's Eating Gilbert Grape, which everyone loved!

The next day I flew to Melbourne to commence my holiday.

I have never felt so in the moment as I did whilst in Melbourne, it made me realise I was getting back on track and my worries were somewhat behind me.

I arrived home from Melbourne, had a nap and headed out for a movie with J. We saw Girl on a Train. I had read the book when it first came out and it was ok. One of those blockbuster, page turners from the airport, not really my thing and I found all the characters annoying. The book was better than the movie which would have been god awful if it wasn't for Emily Blunt's performance.

I also saw the new Woody Allen later in the month. Beautifully shot, but the story lacked somewhat, I think the casting left a bit to be desired actually. But still an average Woody film is better than most of the shite out there!

That second week of hols was fairly low key. I had a lot of little jobs to do at home. I slept in, I napped, I read, I wrote, I watched DVDs etc, I went for walks. It was really lovely.

I also had a work thing, although it was so much fun, it hardly felt like work. We hosted William McInnes as part of the Share The Story with Carol Duncan event that I look after. It was a hot evening but 120 people turned up to Toronto Library to hear William talk about his latest book. He was hilarious and kind and generous and had everyone in the palm of his hand.

L and I attended opening night of the Italian Film Festival seeing the funny film, God Willing. It had a huge attendance with the film needing to be shown on two screens.

Saturday was Rodriguez and you can read about that here.

I caught up with my lovely friends A and B for dinner at Supper Lane. I have been busting to eat there since it opened. The food was outstanding but the company perfection. Love those gals!

The third week saw more pottering at home, with lunches and brunches and dinners with family and friends added in.

Monday I caught up with M at Qs, Tuesday dinner with family, Wednesday supper with B, Thursday Christmas shopping, and Friday dinner with my sister and a mammoth binge watch of the new Gilmore Girls, which made us laugh and cry. It was a lot of fun.

Also during the week I took a flying visit to Sydney to catch up with my cousin D and see The Nudes at NSW Art Gallery. D was heavily pregnant and luckily bubs decided not to test Aunty Cathy by coming too early. He decided to appear a week later...what joy, and soooo cute!!!!!

D is an artist and always has interesting insight into what we see. The exhibit was from The Tate in London and was a range of Nudes throughout the years. It was a stunning exhibit, with my highlight being Rodin's The Kiss. A remarkable white marble sculpture of a couple intertwined. Huge and breath taking, it gave me shivers down my spine.

We had a lovely lunch at the Art Gallery, then parted ways as a storm hit and I hot-tailed it for Central!

Saturday was huge. I did my usual market thing after a sleep in. But still tired from a huge night of binge watching Gilmore Girls and a big night ahead of me, I had a lovely nap to ready myself.

I had back to back events at The Basement, a newish cocktail bar. Our lovely Bibliotweeps Book Club had out final meeting of the year there, discussing Bill Bryson's Walk in the Woods. This morphed into out yearly Newy Twistmas outing. This is where Newy Tweeps catch up IRL and have fun. We've been doing this for a few years now and it is always fun to see old friends and make new ones. The Basement was a great venue, had an amazing burger for dinner, and some lovely cocktails. I spent the night at Js which was fun as always.

I caught up with J at Canon and had the most amazing smoked salmon salad.

I also had a lovely afternoon in Newcastle where I did some Christmas shopping on Darby Street, caught the John Olsen exhibit at the gallery, indulged in Popolo Gelato finally, and attended the opening of The Civic Subscription Series for 2017.  I must admit in recent years this has not been a great series, but this years was stunning and I cannot wait to see all the fabulous shows.

And here are my reviews for the month.

And late November means getting Club Cathy ready for Christmas.

And some pics as always.

NOVEMBER ROUND UP

As always November begins with my bil, M's birthday. We celebrated with a lunch at Raymond Terrace Bowling Club this year, and we all had a good club lunch with laughter and love.

 

I also had the extreme pleasure of seeing Julia Gillard on her book tour, with A, B, J, & L, and we indulged in an awesome meal after at Saigon Feast.

 

The charismatic C helped me begin my holidays in style at Caves Beach Hotel with the usual laughter and world solving.

 

And then I flew to Melbourne for a week of brilliantness.

The second week of my break was a bit more laid back, lunching with J at Bella Beans, and D at Hippo Express, attending the ABC Rally, shopping in the mall, seeing the Anne Frank exhibit, finally attending the Wed night markets, last book club of the year, and buying a new dining setting after 18 months of looking.

C & I also had a wonderful night out for her birthday at Casa de Loco and Grain Store. And I caught up with R & R for our usual Christmas lunch at Murray's Beach Cafe.

My last holiday 'job' was to decorate my place for Christmas.

Newcastle was in for a treat the night of the 28th, with the fantabulous Skywhale in town for one night only. A and I were also heading to see William McInnes at Newcastle Library, and he had the audience in the palm of his hands with his wonderful, witty, and poignant stories of holidaying as a kid. What a performer, what an entertainer, and what a comedian. We laughed till we cried and umm snorted (that would be me). I was also lucky enough to meet the man himself prior to the talk, he was funny and lovely and very swoon worthy. Thanks to the lovely J for making that happen. And so we joined our friends and their families to see if the magnificent beast would rise, she sort of did, but not for long. But it didn't dampen the spirit of the night, one of the most remarkable nights I have seen in Newcastle for a long time.

After such a rough month in October, I felt like I was on the mend (as it were) in November and I slowly started to feel better only to have a few things punch me in the guts late in the month. Thankfully I was mending and I wasn't knocked down for long, but the journey with the mean reds still continues. Which is a concern at this time of the year.

 

But as always I remain hopeful, cause what else is there if not hope.

 

Here are my reviews for November, being on holidays meant I got through a lot more than usual.

 

And some photography...