Sarah's Birthday Picnic

After a frantic morning yesterday spent racing around in the searing heat. First to drop in at Fat Fighters for 'processing' - the weigh in, or as I like to think of it the Kiss or Cry - (0.9kg lost this week, making a total of 3Kg in the past 3 weeks!), and then stopping by the Buddhist centre to finalise the stocktake numbers for the bookshop. It was sweet relief to join Sarah and some of my friends for a picnic to celebrate Sarah's birthday, under the cool shade of a huge tree. Sarah works and lives at an exclusive residential college near where I live, and the grounds are absolutely stunning. The college was built quite some years back, and mostly in the Gothic Revival style.


Oliver Swallows Fist
Originally uploaded by Other Andrew.

Daen & Adrienne's new son Oliver makes a good attempt at swallowing his entire fist.

A J
Originally uploaded by Other Andrew.

Spyder & Gordy's cute son AJ, a really sweet kid. Having just learned to walk he has the cutest little slightly bow legged stance, and walks like a real little tough guy.

College Grounds 1
Originally uploaded by Other Andrew.

The beautiful quandrangle at the college, where we had the picnic. Complete with Gothic Revival (and even a section of Renaissance Revival) architecture and a real 15th C Italian well cap in the formal garden.

Dolphins!
Originally uploaded by Other Andrew.

Detail of the wonderful 15th C well cap.

College Grounds 3
Originally uploaded by Other Andrew.

Gothic Revival meets Renaissance Revival. Lots of colleges and exclusive schools were built in these styles in Australia in the earlier decades of last century. Seems they were the offical styles of Culture & Learning.

So it was a lovely afternoon of being lazy, hanging out with friends and celebrating Sarah's Birthday. I did real well with my birthday gift of the 25th anniversary reprint of William Goldman's The Princess Bride. Last year at Sarah's party we hung out in the formal rose garden at the college, and I spent plenty of time with my God(less) Daughter Isobel (aka Grizzobel Moans). Fortunately, this year half my house hadn't fallen down when I got home.

A lovely afternoon.