Monday 30 November 2009

Sunday Scribblings "Game"

G'Day,
Sunday Scribblings on a Monday, oh well. That speaks of the game I played over the weekend.
The prompt word for this week is "game".
I can think of this word taking me in many different directions .
Us Aussies use the word game to mean brave. As in "are you Game? Do you want to have a go? "type of meaning. I don't know if it is used or understood in that context in other parts of the world. Maybe you can enlighten me.
I am not usually that game. But if you challenge me......
One night when I was out with some of my work mates in Junee they challenged me to go Gnome Knapping. We pulled up outside Kerrie's house and I snuck up to her front veranda and took the Gnome that her mother in law had given her for a present. She hated Gnomes. Then we took it and placed it at the front door to the Dr surgery where she worked so that when she came to work in the morning it was standing , proud and ridiculous, stupidly waiting to greet her. She thought that was a great joke. I love playing tricks on people. While on the subject of gnomes. Another friend who lives in Wagga, had a son who joined the navy and took a stolen gnome around the world with him. Then sent photos of the gnome, anonymously, back to the person who it belonged to, which were taken in well known tourist spots around the world. Funny, I love it.
"Game"
The primary school that my children attended in Junee while growing up, had for their motto, "Play the Game". Good advice. We should all try to do that and put aside the silly idea that we need to go against advice or authority to get what we want and always be true to ourselves. I know that does not always apply, but for every day stuff, not the big stuff that matters, it really does not hurt you to play along to get results you want. Play along with the people that you don't like and you know don't like you just for the sake of peace and harmony. It doesn't hurt to follow the rules a bit, that is what they are there for ... isn't it? You need to do that to fit in. I played that game with my hubby's sister's in law on the weekend, hehe.
"Game"
My sister recently introduced me to a game called sequence. It is a cross between a board game and a card game. You have to place buttons on a board as you turn up cards and get them in a sequence of 5 cards, while the other players try to block your moves. I almost never win board games. I find it strange to be in a position of attack and defense at the same time with them.
That same night we moved on to a game of euchre. I always get annoyed when I play that because my Mum loves to haggle over each card played and that drives me nuts. I don't know why she does that and I hate playing cards with her because any game with her becomes slow moving and is dragged out to last 3 times longer than it needs to. I am a bad and impatient daughter. Other than that I play spider solitaire on the puter. Mindlessly, over and over again. It is a way to waste time and block out what is going on around me I guess, like the rubbish they try to feed us on the T.V.
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I just had the most lovely weekend. My daughter had her 21st birthday party. Her birthday is actually next week but she changed the date for her party to fit in with others being able to attend it.
Pictures will follow.
I got my hair done, we went together. Now you can't see the gray hairs that were showing around my hairline, he he. We stayed in a nice motel, ate out, went shopping, met up with family and friends. Lovely. The weekend also saw me take my Mum to her home town, Griffith, to another party. It was my uncle Bill's 60Th wedding anniversary. 60 years wow! Anyway as a consequence I got to see some of my cousins. I love those girls. I fit right in with them. Plus I saw a couple of my favorite Aunts and Uncle. It was quite a bit of driving but that is O.K. I don't mind that. And when Pete is driving I get to snooze, he he. It is my Aunty Joan's 80th birthday on 12th December so I will get to see them all again, together. All being well, I should be able to get to that. When we got home home last night we were just in time to go back out again to the Tuggeranong community festival and watch a freebie Ian Moss concert. It was a biggie because it was the 21st one. Also at the festival we enjoyed watching children play and dance in front of the stage to a west African drumming troupe. Cool, lots of fun. And then there were the fire works. They seemed to go on for ages. And.... and.... and.... a group of kids doing circus stuff with hoops, stilts, balls, fire and acrobats etc. Clever kids. The best part was watching the faces and reactions of the toddlers to the entertainment.
For the last 4 days we have returned to cooler wet weather. At the moment I am wearing a cardigan again. It is just a couple of days away from the official start of summer. Wet weather; I am not complaining as an urban gardener.... but....all the way in the car on the weekend I was seeing grain crops ready to strip being spoiled by the rain. The farmers had half finished stripping some paddocks and had to abandon their work. They will be watching and cursing the skies while their much awaited crops are being ruined. I reckon that Aussie farmers are the greatest gamblers in the world. If the conditions are not just right their years work is lost. If the grain gets wet at harvest time it can drop or be shot and sprung, which means it starts to sprout from the moisture and is ruined, or if they can't get their equipment into the paddock because it is too wet they lose it anyway. Not to mention the risk of spontaneous combustion if they strip wet. The only thing they can do with it is let their stock in to eat what they can of it. There are machines they can get to help dry it but they cost money and the quality is reduced. I guess there is a romantic image of life on the land that we long to have but it is not an easy way to learn a living.
I have done part of my christmas shopping. There is more to do yet. Have not sent any cards as yet, must get on to that. Pete is to have his gall badder removed on 21st December. So it will be a quiet Chrissy season this year. As far as the operation is concerned the sooner the better I guess but it is not a good time of year to have to go through that.
O.K. that is all my news and stuff this week.
Bye
Love Linda.

9 comments:

Tumblewords: said...

Cool games. Steal the gnome is a hoot!It sounds like a delightful trip! Good luck with the upcoming events.

Lilibeth said...

It brought back some memories oabout games. I have two little gnomes playing chess under a bush in my front yard. I hope they don't disappear...nah. There's a verse in the New Testament (Paul's advice to Timothy) "And also, if a man competes in athletics, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules." Your school slogan reminded me of that. If there were no rules in games, we would have no fun...in life too.

Shadow said...

ouch, i'll be holding thumbs for pete. and christmas, yeah well, i have done nothing much in terms of preparation, bar the decorations that i've put up... buuuut, there's still time...

Jae Rose said...

That brings back happy memories of watching 'Neighbours' as a kid and they used to pinch Harold's gnome and send pictures of it back to him. Is it a prank peculiar to Oz? Made me chuckle thank you..Jae

A wildlife gardener said...

It is good to be 'Game For A Laugh', i agree...and you certainly are, Linda May :)

Congrats to your daughter on her 21st birthday and to your Uncle Bill's 60th wedding anniversary...amazing :) We've celebrated our 41st in August :)

George S Batty said...

love the gnome game. I don't believe I have ever seen a Gnome lurking about in my neck of the woods. Maybe I don't have the right colored glasses. Nice post.

Unknown said...

Ours was a bag of dog shit left on the porch of some unsuspecting fellow.......and doused with lighter fluid sos it'd burn....what hollerin' and stompin' and hosin' down till a big stinkin' mess was all over....or heavin' a sack's worth of eggs and waterballoons into the Parish Boy's bedroom window about 2AM......or a rock fight down at the creek with the older boys...or shootin`bottle rockets on 4th of July at Lonnie`s dad`s barbeque pit.....damn !!! We were a pack of little assholes !!!

Sorrow said...

What a wonderful recommendation.!It's been forever since i played a game of any sort, seem to get to caught up with "stuff"
Is your daughter your youngest?
give her a big birthday hug from us here in cyber land!

Dee Martin said...

I love the gnome-napping! I' not very "game" but I might be talked into something like that :)